The Art of Mustache
By: Charz
Tags: Art of invisibility, Camouflage, Deer, evolution, Mustache, Natural camouflage, Ninjutsu, One Piece, Opossum, Psychopomp, Survival of the fittest
Natural Camouflage
Wild creatures disguise themselves or simply manage to be invisible
The art of camouflage (from the French camoufler, to disguise) is usually thought of as a military device. Actually camouflage is an innovation of the animal world, and in spite of man’s best efforts to copy nature no artillery battery has ever been hidden from hostile eyes as skillfully as many wild creatures are able to hide from their enemies. Animal, birds, insects and fishes all share this wonderful ability. Some, like the deer, can stay absolutely motionless and blend into their natural surroundings. Some, like the sole, can change color and markings to fit different backgrounds. Others, like the bumblebee moth, make no pretense of invisibility but manage to impersonate other creatures. Even the opposum uses a form of camouflage, feigning death so successfully that “playing ‘possum” has become a part of the language. Scientists are not certain how all these methods of camouflage originated.
Perhaps the best explanation is that the creatures which were able to hide most successfully survived longest, while the least able starved or were eaten. Thus, through survival of the fittest, each species was narrowed down to the members with the finest camouflage.
LIFE Aug 6, 1951, p45
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