protocooperation
biology
Also known as: facultative mutualism
Quick Summary
Protocooperation is a biological term describing an automatic or involuntary interaction between different kinds of organisms that results in mutual benefit. This concept was introduced by Warder Clyde Allee, who proposed it as a foundation for both conscious and unconscious cooperation observed in higher animals and their community structures. An example of protocooperation is how trees provide debris habitats, which in turn benefit microfauna living in or on that debris by stirring the forest floor.12
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