Moth with warning colours. A six-spot Burnet moth Zygaena trifolii perched on the bud of a carnation plant. The moth is coloured bright red and black.

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Moth with warning colours. A six-spot Burnet moth Zygaena trifolii perched on the bud of a carnation plant. The moth is coloured bright red and black. These are warning colours. They serve to make this Burnet moth deliberately conspicuous to predators. Warning (aposematic) colouration indicates that the animal has built-in defences such as a sting, or poisonous flesh. Zygaena trifolii is inedible, its flesh tasting extremely repugnant. An in- experienced predator will attack and taste the moth, reject it, and be warned in future by the bright colours. Because Zygaena has no need to escape, it is sluggish & easily caught by humans.

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Size: 3489px × 5079px
Photo credit: © CLAUDE NURIDSANY & MARIE PERENNOU/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: animal, aposematic, burnet, colour, colours, insect, insecta, invertebrate, invertebrates, moth, nature, trifolii, type, warning, wildlife, zoology, zygaena