Mimicry
In mimicry a message (feature or signal) of one organism, the mimic, resembles some message of another organism which usually belongs to a different species, some feature of the environment, or a generalization of either of those, that is called the model. This resemblance should have some functionality for the mimic by being deceptive for a third participant, the receiver, whose recognition and response is relevant for the mimic. Some researchers use the notion mimicry system to emphasize the systemic nature of mimicry and the relatedness of the three participants.

There is a remarkable variety among mimicry cases in nature. Mimicry exists in most animal classes and also in many plants. Mimetic messages can be transferred in visual, auditory, chemical, tactile and other channels or frequencies that animals use for communication. Mimicry can also be based on many ecological relations such as predation, symbiosis, parasitism, and it can employ different life functions such as foraging, reproduction, and defense.

To organize such high diversity, researchers have proposed many mimicry types and typologies. Historically, the oldest and best-known mimicry types are Batesian mimicry (resemblance of harmless species to some non-edible species that signals their unsuitability to possible predators), Müllerian mimicry (resemblance of aposematic signals of different non-edible species), and aggressive or Peckhamian mimicry (resemblance of predators’ messages to messages of some species, or to some objects, that are harmless to their prey).

Biologists, who have carried out most of the research in mimicry, pay much attention to evolutionary aspects of the phenomenon. The main aspects in the mimicry research of modern biology include: dynamics of mimic and model populations in various selective situations and environmental conditions; behavior of signal receivers with respect to mimics and models, receivers’ abilities to discriminate and learn; variability of mimetic features including genetic and geographical variability of mimics and models. There are also alternative explanations to mimicry that do not rely on evolutionary concepts. Researchers have explained mimicry, for instance, as coincidence because of limited structural combinations in living organisms or as similarity caused by influences of physical conditions in similar living environment.

Also paradigms outside of the natural sciences use the concept of mimicry. For instance in postcolonial studies mimicry has been understood as disruptive imitations that are characteristic of postcolonial cultures. In psychology many authors use mimicry to indicate unconscious imitations between humans, especially related to facial gestures and body movements. In a semiotic context several authors (Sebeok, Nöth, Deacon) have discussed biological mimicry in terms of sign categories and sign processes. There are indeed many directions in mimicry studies, where a semiotic approach can be productive. For instance, semiotics can be applied in analyzing long and complex mimicry displays. Uexküllian biosemiotics, that pays attention to meanings in nature, can be successful in analyzing abstract mimicry, where abstract features, such as ocular shapes, movements or body types common to larger groups, are imitated rather than species-specific characteristics. The Peircean typology of signs opens up new perspectives for classifying mimicry resemblances.