The Hidden Life of Bugs Today and in the Past

Imagine you are an insect looking for food. You don't want to be seen or eaten, so you find a way to protect yourself. In this work, we explore some of the camouflage strategies that insects use and have used over time. These include using colors, body growths, and background patterns for camouflage; growing poisonous hairs for protection; displaying bright colors to signal poisonous compounds; developing inside stems, branches, leaves, and galls (abnormal growths); making self-made cases; covering their bodies with debris; mimicking strong, non-attackable insects; developing under a layer of froth; imitating plant stems; bearing long hairs, thoracic thorns, and flattened bodies. While many of these concealed bugs can be found in your backyard, amber fossils reveal the types of disguises that existed in the past, even during the time of the dinosaurs.