Ladies and gentlemen, the award for best invertebrate imitation goes to Hemeroplanes triptolemus for its masterful imitation of a venomous snake!

Photo: Andreas Kay

Native to the Amazon rainforests, the snake-mimicking caterpillar grows into an unimpressive moth from the family Sphingidae, but in its larval stage it incorporates an astonishing survival tactic. You also need one, as without a good defense system, sphinx moth caterpillars are essentially energy-rich ‘nom-nuggets’ that present themselves on a bed of green leaves for jungle predators.

To avoid that fate, the larva of this moth expands and exposes its underside to mimic the head of a snake with black eyes and even light reflections.

Photo: Andreas Kay

Although it is not an easy feat. The caterpillar begins its defensive maneuver by lunging back and twisting its body to expose hidden shadows of yellow, white, and black on its underside. It then draws in air through small holes in its sides (known as spiracles) and pumps them toward the front of its body. Once the segments inflate, the caterpillar truly transforms, taking the form of a venomous snake complete with a diamond-shaped “face” and large black eyes.

If the “deadly” (and quite expensive) disguise is not enough to deter a predator, such as a lizard or bird, the caterpillar could also attack like a snake to enhance the effect.

Although deflection, a tactic that involves using eyespots to divert predators’ attention away from the head, is not uncommon among animals, the fake snake-mimicking caterpillar face is actually found on the same extreme than the true one.

“Deflection may not work well for a caterpillar because the caterpillar probably won’t survive if an attacker punctures or tears off any part of its body,” explains eyespot expert Dr. Thomas Hossie. “This defense is all about intimidating or scaring an attacker who will flee (or fly) rather than risk a lethal encounter with a snake.”

Photo: Andreas Kay

Photo: Reinaldo Aguilar

Photo: Andreas Kay

Interestingly, we also know of a moth that camouflages itself as a snake in its fully developed stage, and for which the price of this type of disguise is also quite high in terms of energy.

But this guy seems to beat everyone else in the animal kingdom in terms of rocking the best snake costume ever.