Animals that blend in with their surroundings:
* Chameleons: These lizards change their skin color to match the background they are on.
* Arctic foxes: Their fur turns white in winter to blend in with the snow and brown in summer to match the tundra.
* Leopard geckos: These reptiles have intricate patterns that help them blend in with the rocks and sand of their desert habitat.
* Stick insects: These insects look exactly like twigs, making them nearly invisible to predators.
* Sea horses: These fish can change their color and even develop patterns to match their coral reef surroundings.
* Flatfish: These fish lay flat on the ocean floor and change their color to match the sand or rocks beneath them.
* Butterflies: Many butterflies have wing patterns that resemble leaves or bark, allowing them to hide from predators.
Animals that use disruptive coloration:
* Zebras: The stripes on a zebra's body break up their shape, making it difficult for predators to target them.
* Tiger: The stripes of a tiger also help to camouflage them in the dense jungle.
* Snakes: Many snakes have patterns that help them blend in with their surroundings, making them difficult to spot.
Animals that use countershading:
* Sharks: These animals have darker backs and lighter bellies, which makes them harder to spot from above or below.
* Deer: The underside of their body is lighter than their back, making them harder to spot against the background of the forest floor.
* Whales: Their dark backs and light bellies also help them blend in with their environment.
Animals that use mimicry:
* Viceroy butterflies: These butterflies have wings that look very similar to monarch butterflies, which are poisonous to predators. This allows the viceroy butterfly to avoid being eaten.
* Stick insects: Some stick insects even mimic the movement of leaves swaying in the wind.
* Octopus: Octopuses can change their skin color, texture, and even shape to mimic their surroundings or other animals.
This is just a small sampling of the many animals that use camouflage to survive! There are countless others, each with their own unique strategies for blending in.