Aposematism and Batesian mimicry in snakes: through the visible spectrum and beyond?

We explore the usefulness of UV photography in investigating putative Batesian mimicry of aposematic elapid snakes by harmless colubrids. We predicted that Batesian mimics would share similar UV reflectance patterns as their models and tested this in two likely Batesian mimicry systems. In North America, both Micruroides euryxanthus and Lampropeltis knoblochi lack any UV reflectance from any part of their dorsum. In India, Bungarus caeruleus displays strong UV reflectance from its light body rings, which is largely echoed in visually similar black and white Lycodon anamallensis, but not in reddish-brown individuals of the same species. Our results highlight the potential for UV photography to contribute to testing mimicry hypotheses. Researchers using inanimate models to test the function of animal patterns need to consider reflectance outside the human visual spectrum to maximise the resemblance of their models to the focal organisms.