By David Brown
Many millions of years ago, moths learned a very cool evolutionary trick: how to look like other things to prevent themselves from being eaten. Resembling other things to improve your chances of survival or reproduction is called mimicry, and moths do it better than most other organisms on Earth.
Sometimes moths mimic dangerous animals to scare off predators. Sometimes moths mimic poisonous animals to tell predators, “Eat me and you’ll get really sick and maybe die!” Sometimes moths mimic parts of their environment, like leaves or bark, so well that predators don’t even know they’re there.
Here are five marvelous moths that protect themselves by looking like other things.
1. The sneaky snakey moth from Southeast Asia
The Atlas moth (Attacus atlas) is one of the largest moths. Its wingspan is a third of a meter (one foot) long. The Atlas moth’s forewing tips are shaped and patterned like the head of a cobra in profile. A bird looking for a beakful of tasty moth might think twice about taking on a pair of snakes.
2. The moth that says, “Leaf me alone”
As a bird scans the environment for something to eat, it skips over dead leaves. Dead leaves don’t even rate a “yuck,” so birds don’t give them a second look. That’s how the moth Uropyia meticulodina, found in China, stays uneaten. It mimics a dead leaf and gets ignored.
3. The moth that looks like something excreted by a bird
Who wants a nice bird poop meal? Anyone? Most birds who prey on moths are going to avoid eating their own poop. Ponometia candefacta, the olive-shaded bird-dropping moth (yes, that is really what it is called), has a neat mimicry trick: it looks like bird poop.
4. The moth that looks like a mouthful of OUCH
The moth Euchromia polymena is also known as the wasp moth because it looks very much like a wasp. Wasps are not on the menu for many predators because of their painful stings. The wasp moth does not sting, and it is not venomous, but a potential predator does not know that. This moth is found across Asia, from India to the Philippines, and also in Australia.
5. The moth that really sticks it to predators
The buff-tip moth (Phalera bucephala) of Europe knows how to disappear by looking like part of a stick.
“I could really go for a nice juicy moth,” thinks a bird sitting on a branch.
“Not this moth,” thinks the buff-tip moth sitting further down the branch, not moving, and blending in.
This has been a dramatic reenactment of how the buff-tip moth hides from a predator using mimicry.
