Cephalopods are quick-change artists. Like a living LCD screen, their skin can flicker and flash, or create complex patterns for camouflage and communication. Layers of specialized skin cells interact to match the environment’s color and texture.
Bumble bee mimics have become a secondary fascination of mine as I study real bumble bees. These robber flies (Diptera: Asilidae) are fantastic mimics that go so far as to mimic color patterns of endemic species across their geographic distribution!
I wonder how many “bumblebees” I’ve seen have really been just very clever robber flies
