Editing Camouflage (section)

=== Mimesis ===

{{further|Mimicry|Cryptic aggressive mimicry}}

In [[Mimesis (biology)|mimesis]] (also called ''masquerade''), the camouflaged object looks like something else which is of no special interest to the observer.<ref name="Gullan">{{cite book |last1=Gullan |first1=P. J. |last2=Cranston |first2=P. S. |title=The Insects |publisher=John Wiley, Blackwell |year=2010 |edition=4th |pages=512–513 |isbn=978-1-4443-3036-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S7yGZasJ7nEC&pg=PA512}}</ref> Mimesis is common in [[prey]] animals, for example when a [[peppered moth]] caterpillar mimics a twig, or a grasshopper mimics a dry leaf.{{sfn|Forbes|2009|page=151}} It is also found in nest structures; some eusocial wasps, such as ''[[Leipomeles dorsata]]'', build a nest envelope in patterns that mimic the leaves surrounding the nest.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Social Biology of Wasps |last=Ross |first=Kenneth G. |publisher=Cornell Press |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-801-49906-7 |page=233}}</ref>

Mimesis is also employed by some [[predation|predators]] and [[parasite]]s to lure their prey. For example, a [[flower mantis]] mimics a particular kind of flower, such as an [[orchid]].{{sfn|Forbes|2009|page=134}} This tactic has occasionally been used in warfare, for example with heavily armed [[Q-ship]]s disguised as merchant ships.<ref name="Beyer">{{cite book |last=Beyer |first=Kenneth M. |year=1999 |title=Q-Ships versus U-Boats: America's Secret Project |publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=978-1-55750-044-1}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=McMullen |first=Chris |url=http://www.gwpda.org/naval/rnqships.htm |title=Royal Navy 'Q' Ships |work=Great War Primary Documents Archive |access-date=6 March 2012 |year=2001}}</ref>{{sfn|Forbes|2009|pages=6–42}}

The [[common cuckoo]], a [[brood parasite]], provides examples of mimesis both in the adult and in the egg. The female lays her eggs in nests of other, smaller species of bird, one per nest. The female mimics a [[Eurasian sparrowhawk|sparrowhawk]]. The resemblance is sufficient to make small birds take action to avoid the apparent predator. The female cuckoo then has time to lay her egg in their nest without being seen to do so.<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1093/beheco/arr008 |last1=Welbergen |first1=J |last2=Davies |first2=N. B. |year=2011 |title=A parasite in wolf's clothing: hawk mimicry reduces mobbing of cuckoos by hosts |journal=Behavioral Ecology |volume=22 |issue=3 |pages=574–579|doi-access=free }}</ref> The cuckoo's egg itself mimics the eggs of the host species, reducing its chance of being rejected.<ref>{{cite news |title=Cuckoo in egg pattern 'arms race' |first=Emma |last=Brennand |work=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9418000/9418131.stm |access-date=22 August 2011 |date=24 March 2011}}</ref><ref name="ibis2002">{{cite journal |last=Moskát |first=C |author2=Honza, M. |year=2002 |title=European Cuckoo Cuculus canorus parasitism and host's rejection behaviour in a heavily parasitized Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus population |journal= Ibis |doi=10.1046/j.1474-919X.2002.00085.x |volume= 144 |issue=4 |pages=614–622}}</ref>

<gallery class="center" mode="nolines" heights="150px" widths="150px">
File:Biston betularia.png|[[Peppered moth]] caterpillars mimic twigs
File:Insect camouflage PP08338.png|[[Flower mantis]] lures its insect prey by mimicking a ''[[Phalaenopsis]]'' orchid blossom
File:Hooded Grasshopper (Teratodus monticollis) W IMG 0525.jpg|Hooded grasshopper ''Teratodus monticollis'', superbly mimics a leaf with a bright orange border
File:Gumleaf grasshopper.jpg|This [[grasshopper]] hides from predators by mimicking a dry leaf
File:IWM-E-18461-Crusader-camouflaged-19421026.jpg|WWII [[tank]] concealed in [[Operation Bertram]] by mimicking a [[truck]]
File:HMS President - geograph.org.uk - 659583.jpg|Armed WW1 [[Q-ship]] lured enemy submarines by mimicking a [[Cargo ship|merchantman]]
File:European Cuckoo Mimics Sparrowhawk.jpg|[[common cuckoo|Cuckoo]] adult mimics [[Eurasian sparrowhawk|sparrowhawk]], giving female time to [[Brood parasitism|lay eggs parasitically]]
File:Cuckoo Eggs Mimicking Reed Warbler Eggs.JPG|Cuckoo eggs mimicking smaller eggs, in this case of [[Eurasian reed warbler|reed warbler]]
File:Wrap-around spider in the genus Dolophones (Family Araneidae) Camouflage View.JPG|Wrap-around spider ''Dolophones'' mimicking a stick
</gallery>