Background complexity and optimal background matching camouflage
Background complexity and optimal background matching camouflage
复制标题
背景复杂度和最佳背景匹配迷彩
DOI：
10.1007/s00265-021-03008-1
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发表时间：
2021
影响因子：
2.3
通讯作者：
U. Kodandaramaiah
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
G. Murali;S. Mallick;U. Kodandaramaiah
通过背景匹配的伪装是一种广泛的反捕食者策略，其中动物与它们的背景融合以避免被发现。为了在多变的自然环境中最大限度地提高生存率，动物可以具有最大限度地匹配一种背景（即专家策略）或部分匹配多种背景（即通才策略）的颜色。理论研究表明，最佳策略取决于背景之间的视觉差异程度（即异质性）或动物遇到背景类型的常见程度。然而，检测的另一个关键决定因素，背景的视觉复杂性，在面对背景异质性的最佳伪装策略（专家与通才）的作用，仍然未知。在这里，我们进行了一个虚拟的捕食实验，采用人类作为代理“捕食者”，并探讨了背景复杂性如何影响伪装在异质背景。在低异质性条件下，我们发现在复杂背景下攻击通才的潜伏期比攻击专家的潜伏期高，而在简单背景下攻击专家和通才的潜伏期没有差异。在中等异质性，专家和通才的目标采取了类似的时间被攻击，无论复杂性，这表明这两种策略可能共存。相比之下，在高水平的异质性，我们发现多面手被攻击更快相比，专家，无论背景是简单还是复杂。因此，我们的研究结果表明，复杂的背景有利于一个通才的背景匹配策略，最大限度地提高健身在多个背景，但只有当背景之间的视觉差异是低的演变。总的来说，我们的研究提供了关键的见解，突出了背景复杂性在异构环境中伪装着色的优化和演变中未被充分认识的作用。许多动物经常面临的挑战，遇到多个视觉上不同的背景，由于其环境的变化，即背景异质性。当存在背景异质性时，动物应该如何优化伪装？理论研究已经提出，动物可以匹配许多背景中的一个（专门化）或部分匹配多个背景（概括化）作为最佳解决方案。然而，从捕食者的角度来看，认知约束也可能在这个优化问题中发挥作用，但这还没有被检查。我们的实验涉及人类作为“捕食者”表明，当背景的复杂性，使搜索任务更加困难，通才目标需要更长的时间比专业目标被攻击，但只有在较少的异质背景。然而，不管复杂性如何，专家目标在避免高度异质背景的攻击方面比通才更好。因此，捕食者的认知约束可能在异质环境中的伪装色彩优化中发挥重要作用。
Camouflage through background matching is a widespread antipredator strategy in which animals blend in with their background to avoid detection. To maximise survival in a variable natural environment, animals can have colourations that either match one of the backgrounds maximally (i.e. specialist strategy) or match multiple backgrounds partially (i.e. generalist strategy). Theoretical work indicates that the optimal strategy depends on the extent of visual difference between the backgrounds (i.e. heterogeneity) or how commonly the animal will encounter the background types. However, the role of another critical determinant of detection, the visual complexity of the background, on optimal camouflage strategy (specialist versus generalist) in the face of background heterogeneity, remains unknown. Here, we performed a virtual predation experiment employing humans as surrogate ‘predators’ and explored how background complexity influences camouflage in heterogeneous backgrounds. Under low heterogeneity, we found the latency to attack generalists was higher than that for specialists on a complex background, but there was no difference between specialists and generalists on a simple background. At intermediate heterogeneity, both specialist and generalist targets took a similar time to be attacked irrespective of complexity, suggesting that both the strategies may co-exist. In contrast, at high levels of heterogeneity, we found generalists were attacked sooner when compared to specialists irrespective of whether the background was simple or complex. Our results thus suggest that complex backgrounds favour the evolution of a generalist background matching strategy that maximises fitness in multiple backgrounds but only when the visual difference between the backgrounds is low. Overall, our study provides key insights highlighting the underappreciated role of background complexity on the optimization and evolution of camouflage colouration in a heterogeneous environment. Many animals often face the challenge of encountering multiple visually distinct backgrounds due to variation in their environment, i.e. background heterogeneity. How should animals optimise camouflage when there is background heterogeneity? Theoretical studies have proposed that animals may match one of the many backgrounds (specialise) or match multiple backgrounds partially (generalise) as an optimal solution. However, cognitive constraints from the predator’s perspective may also have a role to play in this optimization problem, but this has not been examined. Our experiments involving humans as ‘predators’ show that when background complexity renders the search task more difficult, generalist targets took a longer time to be attacked than specialist targets, but only in less heterogeneous backgrounds. However, irrespective of complexity, specialist targets are better than generalists at avoiding attack in highly heterogeneous backgrounds. Cognitive constraints of predators may, therefore, play a significant role in the optimization of camouflage colouration in heterogeneous environments.
影响因子：
10
作者：
Zimova, Marketa;Hacklaender, Klaus;Mills, L. Scott
通讯作者：
Mills, L. Scott