Blending in
Caterpillars can look invisible when
they pretend to be something else. By
copying the color of the food they are
eating, or by looking like twigs or bird
droppings, some caterpillars fool their
enemies into thinking that they aren’t
really there. When something blends
into the background like this, it is
called camouflage.
Breaking up
You can see how the
lines on this caterpillar
help break up its
outline. Blending in
with the leaves allows
the insect to feed
in peace.Is it or isn’t it?
This shiny black swallowtail
caterpillar looks exactly
like a bird dropping. Now
imagine you are a hungry
bird—would you risk a bite?Look for privet hawk-
moth caterpillars
feeding on leaves
in the summer.US_032-033_Blending_in.indd 32 11/10/17 3:34 pm