What behavior is likely to disrupt mutualistic interactions in cleaner fish?

Selecting the option regarding cleaner wrasse biting scales off larger fish when parasites are scarce accurately highlights a significant behavior that disrupts mutualistic interactions. In mutualism, both species benefit from the interaction, as cleaner fish, like cleaner wrasse, typically remove parasites and dead skin from larger "client" fish, which in turn provide food and protection for the cleaners.

When cleaner wrasse bite scales off larger fish, it is a departure from their mutualistic role, manifesting aggressive behavior instead of the expected helpful service. This can damage the relationship between the cleaner fish and their clients, leading to a loss of trust and potentially driving the larger fish to avoid the cleaner species in the future. Over time, these disruptive actions can undermine the mutual benefits that define the partnership, resulting in decreased opportunities for the cleaner fish to feed and diminishing their ecological role.

The other behaviors described, such as refusing to clean certain species or cleaning only smaller fish, do not directly disrupt the mutualistic interaction as severely as the aggressive biting. Overcleaning, while stressful to the client fish, is less likely to lead to a total breakdown of the mutualism compared to actively damaging the client fish. Each of these alternative behaviors can affect interactions in different ways, but biting scales