Vavilovian mimicry
form of mimicry in plants where a weed comes to share one or more characteristics with a domesticated plant
In plant biology and agriculture, Vavilovian mimicry (also crop mimicry or weed mimicry) is a form of mimicry in plants where a weed evolves to share characteristics with a crop plant through generations of involuntary artificial selection. It is named after the Russian plant geneticist Nikolai Vavilov.
Selection against the weed may occur by killing a young or adult weed, by separating its seeds from those of the crop by winnowing, or both. The process has operated since Neolithic times, creating secondary crops such as rye and oats through mimicry of cereals such as wheat.
Definition
Vavilovian mimicry is a form of mimicry in plants where a weed of cultivation evolves to share characteristics with a crop through generations of artificial selection. It is sometimes described as crop mimicry or weed mimicry. It is named after Nikolai Vavilov, a prominent Russian plant geneticist of the early 20th century. In addition, Vavilov described as 'secondary crops' cereals such as rye that he believed derived from weeds that mimicked other cereals.
Classification
Evolutionary biologists describe mimicry in terms of three roles for the species involved: mimic, model, and dupe. The mimic is the species that in some ways resembles the model, creating a deception; the dupe is the species that is deceived.
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Datasets, specimens, observations and peer-reviewed methods provide the appropriate test for the technical claims summarized here. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 10, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7917503. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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