Talk:Batesian mimicry

Imperfect Batesian Mimicry
I've no idea which acknowledged scholar made the point, so that I can't add this the paragraph, but an observation is obviously missing on imperfect protective mimicry. Predators recognizing an aposematic coloration from a distance lose predatory incentive to take a closer look, so the critical ecological interaction of a predator renouncing to prey on the mimic, operates on average in viewing conditions that are below the optimum for discriminating between model and mimic. This situation differs from other forms of mimicry meant to lure the dupe into proximity to the mimic.2A02:1205:34FD:EE0:20AB:9974:1A6A:2D42 (talk) 08:29, 3 August 2017 (UTC)

Possible Error?
"Experiments have shown that squirrels that are sympatric (live together) with such owls are more cautious than other populations.[8]"

Does not make sense. Why would the squirrels become more cautious in an environment that contains a batesian mimic of its predator? They would become less cautious since chances are the hissing sound is not from a snake. —Preceding unsigned comment added by User:128.189.229.166 (talk • contribs) on 01:08, 21 April 2008


 * You're almost certainly right here, thanks for pointing this out. The only other possibility is that the mimicry evolved because they are so cautious. I still haven't got round to reading the whole paper (and thus the slow progress of this article of late), but I'll have to check up on this. Richard001 (talk) 01:41, 21 April 2008 (UTC)

Is the use of the word "poison" correct when talking about snakes and wasps? I believe poison is something you swallow, whereas venom is injected. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Chasmatazz (talk • contribs) 08:20, 19 March 2012 (UTC)

Possible Error? (2nd)
The name of the butterflies do not correspond to the legend (top and bottom may have been inverted)

Plants mimicking ants section.
This section in the article seems a little out of place and a little too specific for an article about all of Batesian mimicry. If there is enough information about flowers mimicking ants wouldn't it be best to create a new article about it and only mention it briefly in the Batesian mimicry article? Clean Demeanor (talk) 17:25, 8 March 2024 (UTC)


 * Hi, that is always an option, but at the moment that article would be hard to source so it's probably some years of research away yet. A section with a "main" link to the subsidiary article and a brief summary of that article would not be shorter than the current section, by the way. As a subtopic it certainly belongs here, isn't unduly long, and illustrates nicely that Batesian doesn't just mean butterflies. It may be worth observing that ants are extremely numerous and widespread, both geographically and taxonomically (22,000 species), and that they are key elements of many ecosystems, so interactions with them are significant. All the best, Chiswick Chap (talk) 17:52, 8 March 2024 (UTC)