Cuttlefish adopt disruptive camouflage under dynamic lighting

Drerup, Christian; Dunkley, Katie; How, Martin J.; Herbert-Read, James E.

Abstract

Many animals avoid detection or recognition using camouflage tailored to the visual features of their environment. The appearance of those features, however, can be affected by fluctuations in local lighting conditions, making them appear different over time. Despite dynamic lighting being common in many terrestrial and aquatic environments, it is unknown whether dynamic lighting influences the camouflage patterns that animals adopt. Here, we test whether a common form of underwater dynamic lighting, consisting of moving light bands that can create local fluctuations in the intensity of light (“water caustics”), affects the camouflage of cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis). Owing to specialized pigment cells (chromatophores) in the skin, these cephalopod mollusks can dynamically adjust their body patterns in response to features of their visual scene. Although cuttlefish resting on plain or patterned backgrounds usually expressed uniform or disruptive body patterns, respectively, exposure to these backgrounds in dynamic lighting induced stronger disruptive patterns regardless of the background type. Dynamic lighting increased the maximum contrast levels within scenes, and these maximum contrast levels were associated with the degree of cuttlefish disruptive camouflage. This adoption of disruptive camouflage in dynamically lit scenes may be adaptive, reducing the likelihood of detection, or alternatively, it could represent a constraint on visual processing.

Citation

Drerup, C., Dunkley, K., How, M. J., & Herbert-Read, J. E. (2024). Cuttlefish adopt disruptive camouflage under dynamic lighting. Current Biology, 34(14), 3258-3264. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2024.06.015

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 6, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Jul 22, 2024
• Publication Date: Jul 22, 2024
• Deposit Date: Jun 10, 2025
• Journal: Current Biology
• Print ISSN: 0960-9822
• Electronic ISSN: 1879-0445
• Publisher: Cell Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 34
• Issue: 14
• Pages: 3258-3264
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2024.06.015
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/3705218
• Additional Information: This paper is available open access via https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2024.06.015