托福口语 Task 4

Today, we're going to talk about a fascinating concept in biology called 'mimicry'. Mimicry is when one species evolves to look or behave like another species, often to gain a survival advantage. There are two main types: defensive mimicry and aggressive mimicry. Let me give you two examples. First, the monarch butterfly is toxic to birds because it feeds on poisonous milkweed. The viceroy butterfly, which is not toxic, has evolved to look almost identical to the monarch. Birds avoid eating the viceroy because they mistake it for the toxic monarch. This is defensive mimicry—the harmless species mimics a dangerous one to avoid predators. Second, consider the anglerfish, which lives in the deep, dark ocean. It has a glowing lure on its head that mimics a small, wriggling worm. Smaller fish are attracted to this 'worm' and swim close, only to be eaten by the anglerfish. This is aggressive mimicry—the predator uses mimicry to attract prey. So, as you can see, mimicry can be used for protection or for hunting.