Which of the following best describes the physical relationship between the partners involved in lichens? Photosynthetic algal cells are surrounded by fungal hyphae Fungal cells are enclosed within photosynthetic algal cells Fungi that grow on rocks and trees are covered by algae Algal cells and fungal cells are randomly mixed together

Lichens are the symbiotic association between any algal species and fungal species. The fungal partner in lichen is named mycobiont and photobiont is the algal partner.

The fungal partner surrounds the algal photosynthetic cells through its hyphae which forms the unique anatomy of lichens. Many species of fungus penetrates algal cell to obtain its nutrition from algae.

Lichens can grow on any surface and they are very good pollution indicators because they do not tend to grow in polluted areas. Therefore the right answer is -Photosynthetic algal cells are surrounded by fungal hyphae.