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The viceroy (Limenitis archippus) is a North American butterfly. It was long thought to be a Batesian mimic of the monarch butterfly , but since the viceroy is also distasteful to predators, it is now considered a Müllerian mimic instead.
Viceroy butterflies and monarchs (types of admiral butterfly) are both poisonous Müllerian mimics, though they were long thought to be Batesian. Mitochondrial DNA analysis of admiral butterflies shows that the viceroy is the basal lineage of two western sister species in North America. The variation in wing patterns appears to have preceded ...
A last-ditch defence is for the animal's flesh itself to be toxic, as in the puffer fish, danaid butterflies and burnet moths. Many insects acquire toxins from their food plants; Danaus caterpillars accumulate toxic cardenolides from milkweeds (Asclepiadaceae). [56] Some prey animals are able to eject noxious materials to deter predators actively.
Equivalent to Batesian mimicry within a single species, it occurs when there is a palatability spectrum within a population of harmful prey. For example, monarch (Danaus plexippus) caterpillars feed on milkweed species of varying toxicity. Some feed on more toxic plants and store these toxins within themselves.
These combine to create a "false head". This misdirects predators such as birds and jumping spiders. Spectacular examples occur in the hairstreak butterflies; when perching on a twig or flower, they commonly do so upside down and shift their rear wings repeatedly, causing antenna-like movements of the "tails" on their wings. Studies of rear ...
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Although the term "bird of prey" could theoretically be taken to include all birds that actively hunt and eat other animals, [4] ornithologists typically use the narrower definition followed in this page, [5] excluding many piscivorous predators such as storks, cranes, herons, gulls, skuas, penguins, and kingfishers, as well as many primarily ...
Symptoms of spider bites vary depending on the type of spider and if their venom is poisonous. Venomous spider bites can cause many side effects, according to the CDC , such as: High blood pressure.