Camouflaged critters — blending in to a scene near you
Camouflage is the use of shapes and colouring to blend in with surroundings. Nature does an impressive job at it.
Living in the inner city, you’d think there wasn’t much nature to be seen. But often the critters are around — just well-hidden. Take that Tawny Frogmouth in the photo above for example. You probably saw it right away but how long did it take you to make out the shape of the second Frogmouth perched alongside? You could fill several books with great examples of camouflaged animals. Here are some from my collection. Most of these shots were taken around Sydney
This Deinopis spider (it used to be called Dinopis) has markings which so closely remsemble those of a dead leaf that it could easily be mistaken for some dried-out foliage
Combine a small amount of mud with the markings of a Striped Marsh Frog and you have something very difficult to see against the background of leaf litter
A starfish blends in with the colours of a rock pool floor
The patterns on this butterfly’s wing resemble leaves
Another Deinopis spider, this time shown hanging beside some leaf litter
A Wolf Spider can be difficult to see until it moves
