Aposematism

Aposematism is the use of conspicuous signals by organisms to advertise defenses such as toxicity, an unpleasant taste, or painful stings. The signals help predators avoid costly encounters.

Warning coloration: Conspicuous coloration that signals an organism is defended or otherwise costly to attack. Bright colors are a common visual channel for advertising defenses.
Predation: An interaction in which one organism captures and consumes another. Aposematic signals evolve in the context of predators attacking prey.
Monarch butterfly: A migratory butterfly whose caterpillars sequester cardenolides from milkweed plants. Its orange-and-black pattern advertises chemical defenses acquired as a caterpillar.
Alfred Russel Wallace: A British naturalist who independently developed the theory of evolution by natural selection. Wallace proposed that conspicuous colors could warn predators about unpalatable prey.
Aposematic signal evolution: The evolutionary change in warning signals as prey and predators interact over generations. Researchers investigate how conspicuous warning patterns arise despite attracting predators' attention.
Batesian mimicry: A harmless species gains protection by resembling a defended species. Harmless mimics exploit predator avoidance of aposematic signals.
Animal defense: Traits or behaviors that reduce an animal's risk of being captured, injured, or consumed. Aposematism advertises defenses rather than supplying them itself.
Poison dart frog: A group of frogs, some species of which carry potent skin alkaloids. Bright colors in many species warn predators of toxic skin secretions.
Charles Darwin: An English naturalist whose work established evolution by natural selection as a scientific theory. Darwin's discussions of conspicuous caterpillars helped frame the puzzle Wallace addressed.
Signal honesty in aposematism: The relationship between the strength of an aposematic signal and the defense it advertises. Variable defenses raise the question of how warning signals remain reliable.

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