Skip to main content

Can animals be deceptive? - Eldridge Adams

644,154 Views

3,945 Questions Answered

TEDEd Animation

Let’s Begin…

A male firefly emits a series of enticing flashes. He hopes a female will respond and mate with him. A female from a different species mimics his patterns: by tricking the male, she lures him in -- and turns him into a meal. Where else do we see this kind of trickery in the animal kingdom? Eldridge Adams details the surprising complexity of how animals manipulate predators, prey and their rivals.

How does a female firefly trick a male from another species?

About TED-Ed Animations

TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »

Meet The Creators

  • Educator Eldridge Adams
  • Director Alex Herder, Tarisa Shelton
  • Narrator Addison Anderson
  • Producer Alex Herder, Tarisa Shelton
  • Illustrator Xiuqi Wang, Dave Ellington, Joseph Le, Hannah Churn, Flavio Galvao
  • Storyboard Artist Xiuqi Wang, Dave Ellington, Joseph Le
  • Character Designer Xiuqi Wang, Dave Ellington, Flavio Galvao
  • Layout Artist Joseph Le
  • Animator Xiuqi Wang, Dave Ellington, Hannah Churn, Flavio Galvao
  • Music Matt Erlichman
  • Content Producer Gerta Xhelo
  • Editorial Producer Alex Rosenthal
  • Associate Producer Bethany Cutmore-Scott
  • Script Editor Emma Bryce
  • Fact-Checker Francisco Diez

More from Awesome Nature