[ Above image: Cuttlefish are masters of quick-change camouflage, thanks to skin cells that act as colored pixels. Credit: Pasquale Vassallo/Getty. Nature journal.]
Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research in Frankfurt, Germany, developed a fascinating camera based study to capture images that will identify tens of thousands of chromatophores. Chromatophores are cells that act like colored pixels that create the ability for cuttlefish to camouflage. The objective behind this study was to observe the tiny colored cells in connection with the brain and behavior. Check out the video below to learn more!
“The cuttlefish doesn’t always conjure up an exact match for its background. It can also blanket itself in stripes, rings, mottles or other complex patterns to make itself less noticeable to predators. “On any background, especially a coral reef, it can’t look like a thousand things,” says Roger Hanlon, a cephalopod biologist at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Chicago, Illinois. “Camouflage is about deceiving the visual system.” – Nature
Link: Cuttlefish wear their thoughts on their skin
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