Study
The role of eyespots as anti-predator mechanisms, principally demonstrated in the Lepidoptera
Stevens, Martin
Biological Reviews, 2005
Reviews the evidence for the two main proposed functions of eyespots — intimidating predators by resembling vertebrate eyes, and deflecting attacks away from the body — and assesses how well each is supported.
- Studied in
- Lepidoptera, Aves
- Sample size
- review of eyespot function
Both functions have some support, but the evidence for eye mimicry as the mechanism of intimidation is weaker than commonly assumed, and much of the literature had not distinguished eye resemblance from simple conspicuousness.
What it means
The authors' reading, and ours. Where they differ, that difference is the point.
How the authors put it
The eye-mimicry hypothesis requires testing against a conspicuousness alternative, which most existing work had not done.
How NatureHQ reads it
The review that identified the confound and set up the experiment that resolved it. It is a good illustration of how a hypothesis can accumulate a century of supportive-looking observations without ever having been tested against its obvious rival.
- A review of a literature the author argues is methodologically incomplete, so it identifies the gap rather than filling it.
- Concentrated on Lepidoptera and avian predators.
What this study is used for on NatureHQ
One study can inform several subjects. Here is everywhere this one is cited.
Published by: Wiley journalsPublished in a Wiley journal.
doi.org/10.1017/s1464793105006810
Checked against Crossref on 2026-09-28, and they agree on the title, the authors and the year.
NatureHQ summarises research in its own words and does not reproduce published text. Reviewed 2026-09-03.