exaptation

[eg-zap-tey-shuhn, ek-sap-]

noun Biology.

a process in which a feature acquires a function that was not acquired through natural selection.

a feature having a function for which it was not originally adapted or selected.

a morphological or physiological feature that predisposes an organism to adapt to a different environment or lifestyle.

predisposition toward adaptation.

Related forms

ex·apt·ed, adjective

ex·ap·tive [eg-zap-tiv, ig-, ek-sap-] , adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Exaptation is always a great word to know.

So is mimicry. Does it mean:

the close external resemblance of an organism to some different organism, such that it benefits from mistaken identity, as seeming to be unpalatable

reversion to an earlier or less advanced state or form or to a common or general type

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ex·ap·ta·tion