托福口语 Task 4

Today we're going to talk about a fascinating behavior in the animal kingdom called 'mimicry'—specifically, when animals imitate other species to gain a survival advantage. Now, this isn't just about looking similar; it often involves tricking predators or prey. Let me give you two examples. First, the viceroy butterfly. For a long time, scientists thought viceroys were harmless and simply mimicked the toxic monarch butterfly to avoid being eaten. But recent research shows that viceroys are actually distasteful themselves! So this is a case of two unpalatable species mimicking each other—called Müllerian mimicry—which reinforces the warning to predators. Second, consider the mimic octopus. This animal can change its color, shape, and even behavior to impersonate dangerous creatures like lionfish or sea snakes. By doing so, it scares off potential threats, even though it isn't venomous itself. This is Batesian mimicry, where a harmless species copies a harmful one. So the main point is that mimicry can take different forms, but always functions as a clever survival strategy.