Mullerian Mimicry vs Batesian Mimicry:

[Kaka89]

What is the exact difference? I've been getting these questions wrong and I keep confusing one for the other.

One explanation says that Mullerian mimics are a group of organisms like bees, wasps and hornets that are not phylogenetically related, posses yellow and black stripes to evade from predators. while batesian mimicry is deceptive - ex a family of flies that resemble the bees, but the flies don't sting at all.

My question is how are the flies different from, say, the bees? Both posses yellow and black stripes to evade from predators and they are both not phylogenetically related right?! ugh I don't know -- please help!

Thanks you so much!!

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[rmm30]

I think you are looking at it from the wrong angle. It's not about evading predators, its more so displaying traits (black and yellow colors in this case) that signal to a predator that they have a viable defense (a stinger in this case). Bees, wasps, hornets, all have stingers and black and yellow colors to signify they mean business. Flies on the other hand display the black and yellow colors but have no stinger (kind of like an unloaded gun). They are "posers". Remember: Batesian = poser.

 

[Kahr]

I think you are looking at it from the wrong angle. It's not about evading predators, its more so displaying traits (black and yellow colors in this case) that signal to a predator that they have a viable defense (a stinger in this case). Bees, wasps, hornets, all have stingers and black and yellow colors to signify they mean business. Flies on the other hand display the black and yellow colors but have no stinger (kind of like an unloaded gun). They are "posers". Remember: Batesian = poser.

You know, in my head the way I remember this is I think "Bate"sian, but I think of the word "bait", like fish bait, and remember that fish bait is a trick/fake, in your words, a poser. 😀

 

[Adammo]

I took a class on ecology, and this is the way our professor helped us remember it:

Batesian like the others said are "posers", first off, they are no threat at all, so they mimic another species which is threatening, like others have said. A fly pretending to be a bee or a wasp, would be an example of this. These flies have no direct way of protecting themselves, so they mimic a more dangerous species, such as a bee, for ex.

Mullerian Mimicry is slightly different, just in the sense that these that mimic are actually capable of defending themselves in other ways. For example, a monarch butterfly (those orange/black ones) when eaten are actually very displeasing for the animal, it often times causes the animal to be sick. So, they are not "posing", they actually are not pleasant to eat, so the predator remembers those colors (in this case, orange + black) and not to eat anything of that nature.