Comic #4788: vavilov

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Here’s the transcribed text from the comic:

Panel 1: “There is an evolutionary concept sometimes called Vavilovian mimicry.” Nikolai Vavilov (1887-1943)

Panel 2: “Basically, a plant will mimic a food crop so that it doesn’t get removed for being a weed.” “Hey! That guy over there is a weed too! He’s just pretending to be grain!”

Panel 3: “The classic example is rye, once considered a nuisance to farmers.” “Rye evolved large seeds and became an annual plant, rather than a perennial. In time, it became a valuable crop.”

Panel 4: Image of wild rye
“wild rye”

Image of cultivated rye
“cultivated rye”

Panel 5: “The upside is that there’s a tasty grain we domesticated on accident.” Images:

• “rye flour”
• “rye bread”
• “rye whiskey”

Panel 6: “The downside is that rye now seems creepy to me.” “Eeeat me! I’ll be whatever you want! Look! Look at my plump seeds! Eat me like beautiful wheat gets eaten!”