Crypsis by background matching and disruptive coloration as drivers of substrate occupation in sympatric Amazonian bark praying mantises

Author(s)

de Alcantara Viana, Joao Vitor ; Duarte, Rafael Campos ; Vieira, Camila ; Antiqueira, Pablo Augusto Poleto ; Bach, Andressa ; de Mello, Gabriel ; Silva, Lorhaine ; Leal, Camila Rabelo Oliveira ; Romero, Gustavo Quevedo

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: SCIENTIFIC REPORTS; v. 13, n. 1, p. 15-pg., 2023-11-15.

Abstract

Background matching and disruptive coloration are common camouflage strategies in nature, but few studies have accurately measured their protective value in living organisms. Amazon's Bark praying mantises exhibit colour patterns matching whitish and greenish-brown tree trunks. We tested the functional significance of background matching and disruptive coloration of different praying mantis morphospecies (white, grey and green) detected by DNA barcoding. Through image analysis, avian visual models and field experiments using humans as potential predators, we explored whether the background occupation of mantises provides camouflage against predation. Data were obtained for individuals against their occupied tree trunks (whitish or greenish-brown) and microhabitats (lichen or bryophyte patches), compared to non-occupied trunks. White and grey mantises showed lower colour contrasts against occupied trunks at the scale of tree trunk, with no differences in luminance contrasts. Conversely, green mantises showed lower colour and luminance contrasts against microhabitats and also exhibited high edge disruption against greenish-brown trunks. The camouflage of white and green mantis models against colour-matching trunks increased search time and reduced encounter distance of human predators. We highlight the importance of camouflage strategies at different spatial scales to enhance individual survival against predators. Specifically, we present a stunning study system to investigate the relationship of phylogenetically related species that use camouflage in sympatry. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 22/10765-3 - Anthropogenic impacts and their effects on biodiversity, complex networks and flux between aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems
• Grantee: Gustavo Quevedo Romero
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 19/08474-8 - Freshwater ecosystems under climate change: impacts across multiple levels of organisation
• Grantee: Gustavo Quevedo Romero
• Support Opportunities: Research Program on Global Climate Change - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 19/01934-3 - Colour change and camouflage in coastal benthic crustaceans: occurrence, selective pressures and ecological function
• Grantee: Rafael Campos Duarte
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 17/26243-8 - Extreme rainfall events and their effects on the community structure and ecosystem functioning
• Grantee: Pablo Augusto Poleto Antiqueira
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 22/00946-0 - Adapting to a changing world: how variability in predation risk and in the availability of new habitats affect colour change and camouflage in chameleon prawns (Hippolyte varians)?
• Grantee: Rafael Campos Duarte
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor