Pouyannian mimicry

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English

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Etymology

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Coined 1982 by Georges Pasteur, after Maurice-Alexandre Pouyanne, who described the behaviour in orchids in a 1916 paper.[1]

Noun

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Pouyannian mimicry (uncountable)

  1. (biology, botany) A type of mimicry exhibited by some plants, whereby certain flower parts resemble a (female) potential mate for a male of a pollinator species, thus inducing pseudocopulation.
    • 2017, Wiley Blevins, Ninja Plants, Lerner Publishing Group (Twenty-First Century Books), page 52,
      The plant world is full of mimics. In Pouyannian mimicry, a flower mimics a female insect to attract the right male pollinator.

References

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  1. ^ 1916, H. Correvon, M. Pouyanne, "A curious case of mimicry in Ophrys", Journal de la Société nationale d'horticulture de France, 4:29-47.

Further reading

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