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Updated: Dec 26, 2025

Low-Cost Automated Flight Intercept Trap for the Temporal Sub-Sampling of Flying Insects Attracted to Artificial Light at Night
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False holes as camouflage.

Leah M Costello1, Nicholas E Scott-Samuel2, Karin Kjernsmo1

  • 1School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK.

Proceedings. Biological Sciences
|March 12, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

False hole markings on butterfly wings provide camouflage by disrupting the wing surface, offering survival benefits against predators. This disruptive camouflage mimics natural leaf damage without increasing conspicuousness.

Keywords:
camouflagedepth perceptionleaf mimicrypredationprotective colourationsurface disruption

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Animal Behavior

Background:

  • Leaf mimicry is a notable form of camouflage in Lepidoptera.
  • Wing markings resembling holes are proposed to enhance leaf mimicry or disrupt appearance.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the survival benefits of false hole markings against avian predation.
  • To determine the functional mechanism of these markings in camouflage.

Main Methods:

  • Field experiments using artificial butterfly targets to assess predation.
  • Computer-based visual search experiments to evaluate human detection of targets.

Main Results:

  • False hole markings significantly increased survival rates against avian predators.
  • These markings impeded human visual search detection, unlike contrasting light marks.
  • Contrasting light marks increased target detection.

Conclusions:

  • False hole markings function as surface disruptive camouflage, breaking up the wing's homogeneous appearance.
  • This camouflage strategy provides a survival advantage by mimicking natural leaf damage without increasing conspicuousness.