Code breaking is a method by which certain animals gain a leg up on their competition by adapting the behavior of another species. Code breakers are interesting because they have gained the ability to learn certain niche behaviors of other species and use them to their advantage. For example, fireflies have the ability to bioluminesce. Male fireflies flash their thorax many times in pursuit of females. Each species of firefly have different flashing patterns. Males will flash continuously, looking for a female, while a female will flash once or twice very quickly to let the male know she wants to mate. There is a species of firefly that will use the flashing pattern of another species to attract a male. Once the male has flown over to the culprit, it will promptly be eaten. This code-breaking behavior is not as rare in organisms as one might think. Even humans have unknowingly become code breakers. Earthworm grunting is an example of human code breaking. Worm grunting is a method of harvesting earthworms and it involves placing a wooden stake in the ground, vibrating that stake with a flat iron, then waiting for worms to rise up from the ground. The vibration of the wooden stake mimics the burrowing of a mole, causing earthworms to leave their burrows and come up to the surface of the ground. Code breaking is an efficient way for one species to gain an advantage over its prey.
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