Question

A partial parasite is the one which
A. Absorbs water and mineral salts from host
B. Absorbs only water from the host
C. Takes food from the host only occasionally
D. Lives on the host for space only

Answer 1

Hint: They are known as non- nutrient parasites because they make their food but depend on hosts to absorb certain substances.

Complete answer:
Partial parasites are the organisms that only take water and minerals salts from the host plant. They just steak the water from the other plants and can make their food by the process of photosynthesis. They are chlorophyllous and make their food and do not depend upon the host.

Additional information
- Those organisms which derive their food and nutrition from another plant and are living on them are called parasitic plants.
- The presence of haustoria is the characteristic feature of the parasites which penetrate deep inside the host cells and extract their nutrients from them.
- Parasites are fully dependent on the host whereas partial parasites do photosynthesis to prepare their food and feed only on insects.
- The parasites are of two types base on the degree of dependency on their host, they are:
> Total parasites are called holoparasitic plants
> Partial parasitic plants are called hemiparasitic plants.
- Santalum album, Cassytha filiformis are examples of partial parasites.

So, the correct answer is ‘Absorbs water and mineral salts from the host’.

Note: Parasitic behavior evolved in angiosperms around 12-13 times independently, a classic example of convergent evolution. The development of haustoria is the feature that gives rise to parasitism and is an evolutionary event. Many parasitic plants have evolved ‘self-compatibility' to avoid parasitizing themselves. The aquatic species of plants and algae also show parasitism.