Ironically, Camouflaging Octopi & Squids Are Colorblind: Study

While they can effortlessly blend with the colors of their environment, cephalopods like cuttlefish, squid and octopus are themselves colorblind.

AsianScientist (Sep. 20, 2016) – While they manage to blend beautifully with their surroundings, cephalopods themselves are actually colorblind, finds a new study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

Cephalopods—cuttlefish, squid and octopus—are renowned for their fast color changes and remarkable camouflage abilities. Previous investigations of vision and visual pigment evolution in aquatic predators, however, have focused on fish and crustaceans, generally ignoring the cephalopods.

Soft-bodied cephalopods are attractive for studying the evolution of vision as they have camera-like eyes, sharing many similarities in optics, anatomy and function with fish. According to Professor Justin Marshall and Dr. Chung Wensung from the Queensland Brain Institute, the goal of the study was to investigate how these creatures adapt to the light conditions in different habitats.

The researchers found that squids have the ability to adapt their vision depending on the color and depth of the water they live in. This ability is called evolved spectral tuning, as they can change their visual focus from green, in coastal waters, to blue, to match deep sea conditions.

“These engaging and charismatic animals can display complex, bright color patterns on their skin, but our studies have reconfirmed beyond doubt that they are colorblind,” Marshall said. “It is ironic then that humans still struggle to spot them in the natural habitat where their camouflage is perfectly matched with the surroundings.”

Marshall said this latest research into cephalopods provided fascinating insights into how the remarkably intelligent creatures interacted with their world.

“Everyone loves an octopus and finding out more about the way they and their cousins see their world is a treat and a privilege,” Marshall added.



The article can be found at: Chung & Marshall (2016) Comparative Visual Ecology of Cephalopods from Different Habitats.

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Source: University of Queensland; Photo: Pixabay.
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