Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Predator-Prey Interactions

Predator-Prey Interactions

Predators consume prey for energy. Predators that acquire prey and prey that avoid predation both increase their chances of survival and reproduction (i.e., fitness). Routine predator-prey interactions elicit mutual adaptations that improve predator offenses, such as claws, teeth, and speed, as well as prey defenses, including crypsis, aposematism, and mimicry. Thus, predator-prey interactions resemble an evolutionary arms race.

Fixed Action Patterns

Fixed Action Patterns

A fixed action pattern (FAP) is a specific, hard-wired sequence of behaviors that occurs in response to an external stimulus, called a sign stimulus. The behavior is “fixed” because it is essentially unchangeable—proceeding similarly across individuals of a species every time it occurs.

Mate Choice

Mate Choice

Mate choice—the decision about whom to mate with—is a type of natural selection, since animals must reproduce to pass down their genes. Mate choice is also called intersexual selection because the behavior occurs between the sexes.

Types of Selection

Types of Selection

Natural selection influences the frequencies of particular alleles and phenotypes within populations in several different ways. Primarily, natural selection can be directional, stabilizing, or disruptive. Directional selection favors one extreme trait and shifts the population towards that phenotype while selecting against individuals displaying alternate traits. Stabilizing selection favors an intermediate trait with a narrow range of variation. Deviation from the optimal phenotype towards an...

Frequency-dependent Selection

Frequency-dependent Selection

When the fitness of a trait is influenced by how common it is (i.e., its frequency) relative to different traits within a population, this is referred to as frequency-dependent selection. Frequency-dependent selection may occur between species or within a single species. This type of selection can either be positive—with more common phenotypes having higher fitness—or negative, with rarer phenotypes conferring increased fitness.

Anatomy of the Eyeball

Anatomy of the Eyeball

The eye is a spherical, hollow structure composed of three tissue layers. The outer layer — the fibrous tunic, comprises the sclera — a white structure — and the cornea, which is transparent. The sclera encompasses some of the ocular surface, most of which is not visible. However, the 'white of the eye' is distinctively visible in humans compared to other species. The cornea, a clear covering at the front of the eye, enables light penetration. The eye's middle layer, the vascular tunic,...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Contact chemoreception in multi-modal sensing of prey by Octopus.

Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology·2022

Same author

Dark scene elements strongly influence cuttlefish camouflage responses in visually cluttered environments.

Vision research·2018

Same author

Integrative Neurobiology and Behavior of Mollusks Symposium: Introduction, Perspectives, and Round-Table Discussion.

The Biological bulletin·2018

Same author

The effects of backgrounding system on growing and finishing performance and carcass characteristics of beef steers.

Journal of animal science·2018

Same author

An Ethogram of Body Patterning Behavior in the Squid Loligo vulgaris reynaudii on Spawning Grounds in South Africa.

The Biological bulletin·2017

Same author

Ionophore-Induced Calcium Waves Activate Unfertilized Zebrafish (Dank rerio) Eggs.

The Biological bulletin·2017

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 11, 2026

Visualization of Caenorhabditis elegans Cuticular Structures Using the Lipophilic Vital Dye DiI

Visualization of Caenorhabditis elegans Cuticular Structures Using the Lipophilic Vital Dye DiI

Published on: January 30, 2012

Vertical visual features have a strong influence on cuttlefish camouflage.

K M Ulmer¹, K C Buresch, M M Kossodo

¹Program in Sensory Physiology and Behavior, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA. kulmer@mbl.edu

The Biological Bulletin

|May 17, 2013

Summary

Cuttlefish camouflage relies on visual cues. Vertical patterns, even on 3D objects, strongly influence cuttlefish body patterns more than horizontal substrates.

More Related Videos

Integrating Visual Psychophysical Assays within a Y-Maze to Isolate the Role that Visual Features Play in Navigational Decisions

Integrating Visual Psychophysical Assays within a Y-Maze to Isolate the Role that Visual Features Play in Navigational Decisions

Published on: May 2, 2019

A Method for Extracting Pigments from Squid Doryteuthis pealeii

A Method for Extracting Pigments from Squid Doryteuthis pealeii

Published on: November 9, 2016

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 11, 2026

Visualization of Caenorhabditis elegans Cuticular Structures Using the Lipophilic Vital Dye DiI

Visualization of Caenorhabditis elegans Cuticular Structures Using the Lipophilic Vital Dye DiI

Published on: January 30, 2012

Integrating Visual Psychophysical Assays within a Y-Maze to Isolate the Role that Visual Features Play in Navigational Decisions

Integrating Visual Psychophysical Assays within a Y-Maze to Isolate the Role that Visual Features Play in Navigational Decisions

Published on: May 2, 2019

A Method for Extracting Pigments from Squid Doryteuthis pealeii

A Method for Extracting Pigments from Squid Doryteuthis pealeii

Published on: November 9, 2016

Area of Science:

Marine biology
Animal behavior
Camouflage science

Background:

Cuttlefish and cephalopods utilize visual cues for adaptive camouflage.
Previous research focused on 2D substrates, but marine habitats feature 3D structures.
Benthic predators view cuttlefish horizontally against complex backgrounds.

Purpose of the Study:

To test the influence of horizontal versus vertical visual cues on cuttlefish camouflage.
To investigate how pattern elements on 3D objects and walls affect cuttlefish body patterns.
To compare the impact of substrate versus wall visual stimuli on camouflage.

Main Methods:

Laboratory experiments using Sepia officinalis.
Testing 2D patterns on substrates versus 2D wall patterns and 3D objects.
Manipulating quantity, placement, and features of high-contrast elements and 3D objects.

Main Results:

Vertical visual cues consistently evoked the strongest cuttlefish body pattern responses.
Cuttlefish prioritized vertical plane information over surrounding 2D substrate cues.
Pattern expression was influenced by the quantity, placement, and features of visual stimuli.

Conclusions:

Vertical visual cues are critical for cuttlefish camouflage in complex environments.
Cuttlefish exhibit selective decision-making in their adaptive camouflage.
Findings support field observations of cuttlefish responding to vertical background features.