Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science pp 1–5Cite as

Aposematism

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:

Synonyms

Warning coloration; Warning display; Warning signal

Definition

Anti-predator strategy in which prey exhibit warning signals coupled with some form of secondary defense.

Introduction

Among the many strategies that animals have evolved to deter predators, aposematism is one of the most intriguing. Already in 1877, Sir Alfred Russell Wallace provided thoughts about how distasteful butterflies would benefit from displaying “showy” colors that made them stand out among other butterflies. This, Wallace suggested, helped them being easily seen and recognized, and, consequently, avoided by their enemies (Wallace 1877). The term aposematism, first used by Sir Edward Poulton in 1890, is composed of two words of Greek origin, apo (away) and sema (sign) and refers to an anti-predator strategy that consists of the display of warning signals by prey in order to inform predators about their unprofitability (Poulton 1890). The warning signal, often a conspicuous color or pattern, a...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

References

  • Alatalo, R. V., & Mappes, J. (1996). Tracking the evolution of warning signals. Nature, 382, 708–710.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Endler, J. A., & Mappes, J. (2004). Predator mixes and the conspicuousness of aposematic signals. The American Naturalist, 163, 532–547.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mappes, J., Marples, N., & Endler, J. A. (2005). The complex business of survival by aposematism. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 20, 598–603.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Poulton, E. B. (1890). The colours of animals: Their meaning and use. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rojas, B., Valkonen, J. K., & Nokelainen, O. (2015). Aposematism. Current Biology, 25, R350–R351.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rowe, C., & Guilford, T. (1999). The evolution of multimodal warning displays. Evolutionary Ecology, 13, 655–671.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ruxton, G. D., Sherratt, T. N., & Speed, M. P. (2004). Avoiding attack: The evolutionary ecology of crypsis, warning signals and mimicry. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Speed, M. P., Ruxton, G. D., Mappes, J., & Sherratt, T. N. (2012). Why are defensive toxins so variable? An evolutionary perspective. Biological Reviews, 87, 874–884.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stevens, M., & Ruxton, G. D. (2012). Linking the evolution and form of warning coloration in nature. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 279, 417–426.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Summers, K., Speed, M. P., Blount, J. D., & Stuckert, A. M. M. (2015). Are aposematic signals honest? A review. Journal of Evolutionary Biology, 28, 1583–1599.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wallace, A. R. (1877). The colours of animals and plants. The American Naturalist, 11, 641–662.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland

    Bibiana Rojas, Ossi Nokelainen & Janne K. Valkonen

Authors
  1. Bibiana Rojas
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ossi Nokelainen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Janne K. Valkonen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Bibiana Rojas .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  2. Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, USA

    Russell Jackson

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

About this entry

Cite this entry

Rojas, B., Nokelainen, O., Valkonen, J.K. (2017). Aposematism. In: Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2669-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2669-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation