Cuttlefish change the patterns on their body for courtship rituals, when they eat a snack, and most famously when they want to blend in. How they change their skin patterns may tell us something about how they see the world, says Duke biologist Sarah Zylinski. Her work suggests that when cuttlefish see incomplete shapes, they fill in the visual blanks—much like humans do. Can’t get enough saltwater camouflage? Watch: “Where’s The Octopus?”
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Credits
Photographs, footage: Sarah Zylinski
Archival: archive.org
Produced by Flora Lichtman
Meet the Producer
About Flora Lichtman
Flora Lichtman is a host of Science Friday. In a previous life, she lived on a research ship where apertivi were served on the top deck, hoisted there via pulley by the ship’s chef.