page_title: Aggressive mimicry
section_title: Batesian-Wallacian or prey mimicry
hierarchical_section_title: Aggressive mimicry / Classification / Bipolar mimicry systems / Batesian-Wallacian or prey mimicry
caption_attribution_description: English: Photo taken by uploader (David Marshall) and not used elsewhere.
context_page_description: Aggressive mimicry is a form of mimicry in which predators, parasites or parasitoids share similar signals, using a harmless model, allowing them to avoid being correctly identified by their prey or host. Zoologists have repeatedly compared this strategy to a wolf in sheep's clothing. In its broadest sense, aggressive mimicry could include various types of exploitation, as when an orchid exploits a male insect by mimicking a sexually receptive female, but will here be restricted to forms of exploitation involving feeding. An alternative term Peckhamian mimicry has been suggested, but is seldom used. The metaphor of a wolf in sheep's clothing can be used as an analogy, but with the caveat that mimics are not intentionally deceiving their prey. For example, indigenous Australians who dress up as and imitate kangaroos when hunting would not be considered aggressive mimics, nor would a human angler, though they are undoubtedly practising self-decoration camouflage. Treated separately is molecular mimicry, which shares some similarity; for instance a virus may mimic the molecular properties of its host, allowing it access to its cells.
context_section_description: In some cases of Batesian-Wallacian mimicry, the model is a sexually receptive female, which provides a strong attractive effect on males. Some spiders use chemical rather than visual means to ensnare prey. Female bolas spiders of the genus Mastophora lure male moth-flies (Diptera, true flies, but resembling moths) by producing analogues of the moth species' sex pheromones. Each species of spider appears to specialize in a particular species of prey in the family Psychodidae. Juveniles use their front pair of legs to capture prey, such as flies. Older spiders use a different strategy however, swinging a sticky ball known as a bolas suspended by a silk thread at moths. But both old and juvenile are able to lure prey via this olfactory signal; even young spiderlings have been shown to attract prey species.
  Beginning in the 1960s, James E. Lloyd's investigation of female fireflies of the genus Photuris revealed they emit the same light signals that females of the genus Photinus use as a mating signal. Further research showed male fireflies from several different genera are attracted to these mimics, and are subsequently captured and eaten. Female signals are based on that received from the male, each female having a repertoire of signals matching the delay and duration of the female of the corresponding species. This mimicry may have evolved from non-mating signals that have become modified for predation.
  The listroscelidine katydid Chlorobalius leucoviridis of inland Australia is capable of attracting male cicadas of the Tribe Cicadettini by imitating the species-specific reply clicks of sexually receptive female cicadas. This example of acoustic aggressive mimicry is similar to the Photuris firefly case in that the predator's mimicry is remarkably versatile – playback experiments show that C. leucoviridis is able to attract males of many cicada species, including Cicadettine cicadas from other continents, even though cicada mating signals are species-specific. The evolution of versatile mimicry in C. leucoviridis may have been facilitated by constraints on song evolution in duetting communication systems in which reply signals are recognizable only by their precise timing in relation to the male song (<< 100 ms reply latency).
caption: The spotted predatory katydid (Chlorobalius leucoviridis) is an acoustic aggressive mimic of cicadas.
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