In the animal world, eating and eating are very common. To increase their chances of survival, each animal also has its own defense techniques. Mimicry is an example of the survival techniques possessed by certain animals.
Mimicry itself is basically a kind of camouflage in which an animal appears to have a similar appearance to other animals that are poisonous or dangerous. That way, the animal that was about to eat is expected to immediately discourage it. Following are 5 examples of the amazing mimicry that animals have.
1. Spiders that mimic ants
Myrmecomorphy or ant mimicry is a term for an animal that has the appearance of an ant so that it cannot be distinguished from the actual ant. Spiders are examples of animals that practice ant mimicry. There are about 300 species of spider that have ant-like disguises.
Spiders disguised as ants have bodies that look like real ant bodies. Then on the front of the body, the ant spider has a false eye pattern that looks like an ant's eye. Strange friend, so that the disguise is even more perfect, the ant spider also has the habit of lifting its front legs repeatedly to make it look like an ant antenna that is moving.
There are 2 reasons why there are a number of spider species disguised as ants. The first reason is that the ants that pass by him think that he is passing by his fellow ants. The second reason is to outwit predators because in many cases, predators are reluctant to attack ants which incidentally have the habit of attacking other animals in a gang.
For the first purpose, the ant spider will walk towards the route that ants normally cross. Once an ant is nearby, the spider will ambush it and then drag it to another place so it can be eaten safely. Because its appearance is very similar to the actual ants, other ants will think that the spider is an ant that is carrying the corpse of his friend.
2. Moths That Imitate Wasps
Wasps are insects that would normally be avoided by anyone, including humans. Because if you feel disturbed, wasps can provide a very painful sting. Wasps also have a striking and distinctive body color so that creatures that have been stung by him are reluctant to get close again with insects that have similar color motifs.
This was then used by several species of moths to protect themselves. Moths belonging to the genus Sesia are known to have yellow bodies with black patches like a wasp. His body size also did not differ much from the wasps he imitated.
To make it look more like a real wasp, the moth has transparent wings. Then when they feel a threat, Sesia's moth will fly up slowly like a wasp. Because of their appearance and behavior, which resembles a wasp, Sesia's moth is also known as a wasp moth.
Even though they look very similar, the wasp and wasp moths still have differences. If a wasp has a slim waist, then the wasp moth appears to have a large waist because its chest and stomach are joined together. The other difference is that unlike a real wasp, a wasp moth does not have a sting. So when a creature teases him and doesn't care about his appearance being similar to a wasp, what a wasp moth can do is just fly away to avoid being caught.
3 Beetles Imitating Ants
Spiders are not the only animals that apply ant mimicry. A total of 12 species of wandering beetles are known to also have similar appearance to ants, specifically army ants. The aim is that this beetle can live as a parasite from the ant hordes it infiltrated.
According to scientists' estimates, there are at least 1 wandering beetle in every 5,000 army ants. When a beetle manages to disguise itself between ants, the beetle will sneak into the nest and eat its larvae safely.
A wandering beetle when viewed closely does not look very similar to an army ant because its head looks more flattened than a real army ant. But for other creatures who glimpse it, wandering beetles do look similar to ants.
Army ants themselves originally had poor eyesight and relied on the sense of smell and touch to recognize each other. For this one, the wandering beetle also has a solution. Strange beetle's best friend will pretend to clean the body of other ants so that the smell of the ants come to move into his body.
That way, when there are other army ants that touch it, the ant will think that he is in contact with fellow ants. So that the ants around him are not suspicious, the wandering beetle will also participate in all sorts of ant activities, for example when foraging outside the nest.
4. Flies That Imitate Wasps
The marmalade floating fly (Episyrphus balteatus) is the name of a species of fly that will make any creature feel trembled first because it is considered a dangerous insect. The reason this fly has a very similar appearance to wasps, especially wasps of the species Vespula vulgaris.
Humans and animals generally will not want to look for problems with wasps because they can provide painful stings if disturbed. For some people, a wasp sting can even cause death because some people have an allergic reaction to wasp poison.
Although it looks as scary as a real wasp, the original floating fly is completely harmless to humans. The reason is not like a wasp, this fly does not have a sting. The floating fly itself was originally a useful animal because the adult insect helped pollinate flowers, while the larvae were aphids eaters which incidentally was classified as pest insects.
The floating flies themselves can still be distinguished from real wasps if observed closely. The eyes of floating red flies appear to cover almost his entire head, while wasps have black eyes that are smaller in size. Then if a wasp has a slim waist, the floating fly appears to have a large waist because the chest and abdomen are fused.
5. Caterpillar that Imitates Snake
Hemeroplanes triptolemus is the name of an eagle moth species whose natural habitat is in the lush forests of Central America. The larvae aka caterpillars from moths have a unique way to protect themselves. Because this caterpillar has a pair of large fake eyes and skin that resembles scales. His appearance then makes this caterpillar look like a real snake.
When the caterpillar feels disturbed, it will turn its head toward the creature that is bothering it like a real snake. The next thing the caterpillar will do is pull in its legs and puff out the front of its body to look like a snake's head.
To make the enemy feel even more afraid, this caterpillar can also make quick movements as if to bite his opponent. Feeling panic first, a bird or other animal that had wanted to eat the caterpillar will immediately rush away because it does not want to deal with snakes.
6. Octopus Undercover
Undercover octopus or mimic octopus. This sea animal is a type of octopus that can be found in Indonesian waters. in accordance with its name, undercover octopus is able to camouflage or mimicry by changing the shape or color of his body. He can mimicry such as coral reefs, algae, and other marine animals. No half-hearted, this octopus can mimic approximately 15 other different sea creatures. Undercover octopuses do this to intimidate or avoid their enemies. This is why undercover octopuses are often referred to as the world's smartest octopus.
Mimicry behavior in animals especially in mimics octopus is one of them to protect themselves from predators. By changing its shape into a poisonous animal, predators or other intruders will not dare to eat or even get close to the mimics octopus.
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