Camouflage is an important and popular defense in the insect world, and this is especially true for moths. As many moths are nocturnal and inactive during the day, it is important that they can remain hidden in broad daylight, even when hiding in plain sight. On this lichen-covered rock sits a prime example, the mottled prominent (Macrurocampa marthesia)
Mottled prominent (Macrurocampa marthesia), Fishers Island NY. July 2018.
As caterpillars, they hide by resting against the vein of leaves that they feed on, trying to mimic the part of the leaf they had just eaten. If this tactic does not work, the caterpillars are capable of spraying a burst of formic acid from a gland just above their prothorax (i.e., the caterpillar’s “neck”). Mottled prominents feed on beech, oak, and maple.
Up to two generations a year, with caterpillars common by late spring onward. Caterpillars overwinter as pupae.
A master of disguise, the pygmy seahorse (Hippocampus bargibanti) grows to only 2 cm in length and matches the gorgonian coral that it lives on. The pygmy seahorse is so successful at hiding that it was not discovered until its home was being studied in a lab.
The wire coral crab (Xenocarcinus tuberculatus), also known as the xeno crab, is a species of crustacean endemic to the
Indo-West Pacific.
Xeno crabs grip tenaciously to whip corals with their long legs. A master of mimicking its host, the coloration of its body and appendages matches that of the coral. It can also induce the host’s polyps to “grow” from its carapace, thereby adding to its camouflage.
Urocyon's Jaunts 2.0 
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