Aggressive Mimicry inPhoturisFireflies: Signal Repertoires by Femmes Fatales
- 7 February 1975
- journal article
- other
- Published by American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Science
- Vol. 187 (4175) , 452-453
- https://doi.org/10.1126/science.187.4175.452
Abstract
Females ofPhoturis versicolorprey on males of other species by mimicking the flash responses of the prey's own females. They adjust their responses according to the male pattern, and attract males of four species with distinctively different flashed responses. The capabilities of the firefly brain are more complex than previously suspected. The mimicry is quite effective, and females seldom answered more than ten males without catching one.Keywords
This publication has 4 references indexed in Scilit:
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- Firefly Parasites and PredatorsThe Coleopterists Bulletin, 1973
- Flashes of Photuris Fireflies: Their Value and Use in Recognizing SpeciesThe Florida Entomologist, 1969
- Aggressive Mimicry in Photuris : Firefly Femmes FatalesScience, 1965