Clever Caterpillar “Wears” Flowers for Camouflage…Incredible Disguise!

A caterpillar is a delicious food for many predators; thus, if has to find ways to make sure it does not get eaten. For many, that means hiding among the leaves in hopes that the predator does not take notice. A lot of these clever caterpillars have found a way to mimic their environment to blend in as smoothly as possible. After all, birds and other predators are known to have sharp eyesight.

The caterpillar of the wavy-lined emerald moth has learned to adopt by taking bits of the flower or plant tissue it is eating and pasting it on its back. Voila! The predator will, hopefully, find it difficult to search for the flower-clad caterpillar among the flowers! Clever, isn’t it?

The caterpillars in the many photos shared on Flickr and collated by the Twisted Sifter show that the species does the same thing for any flower, no matter what size or color. Perhaps it does not choose the plant it wants to eat but merely picks out anything that is available. Thus, the disguise is perfect because the caterpillar can move from one flower species to another without much trouble.

Nature is truly incredible. Just imagine how these small creatures were able to come up with such a creative strategy so they can hide from their predators. I find that truly amazing!

If you are wondering how this caterpillar looks like as the wavy-lined emerald moth, here’s a photo of one adult:

Source: Twisted Sifter, Wikipedia