A symbiote is an organism that lives in close relationship with another, often to mutual benefit. It can refer to two different types of relationships - one between plants and fungi or bacteria (mycorrhizal associations) where both partners benefit from the interaction, and the other type is between animals such as clownfish and sea anemones, where they live together in a mutually beneficial relationship. In biology, symbiosis refers to close interactions between different species that can be categorized into three main types: mutualism (both parties benefit), commensalism (one party benefits while the other is not affected) and parasitism (one party benefits at the expense of the other).