Patterns and Shared Strategies
Many of the earth’s creatures share strategies for survival: eyes for seeing, antenna for sensing the environment, ears for hearing predators or lovers. Another strategy is the use of patterning. Patterns can be used for enticing prey such as an orchid mimicking their male pollinator’s female. Or to repel predators such as the viceroy butterfly using color to imitate the distasteful monarch butterfly. Octopuses successfully conceal their bodies by adopting the patterns in their immediate vicinity. Other beings share structural elements, such as hexagonal and pentagonal exoskeletons to provide strength. The stripes of zebras repel biting insects and confuse lions who are unable to distinguish individuals in a moving herd. From the time we are born, our minds learn to use patterns to quickly recognize objects allowing us to move through space efficiently while the patterning of our bodies attracts mates, repel enemies and hide us from danger.
