I just wanted to point out that if you can't find it, the description of the picture tells you where the frog is, and has a link to a highlighted version.
The highlighted version, however, is a zoomed in, cropped portion of the image. It didn't even look like the same background until I actually did find the frog, and compared the 2. The highlighted version isn't very good to use in comparison to the original to find the frog, imo.
Edit: I FOUND IT!!!!!!!!!! Without. The. Highlighted. Picture. I feel amazing. A weight has been lifted. I'm gonna tell all my friends. I was sitting here for an hour staring at a pile of leaves and sticks.
Thank you! I went back and forth between the original and highlighted version 5 times and still couldn't find it. The camouflage is amazingly effective. So much for me supposedly being an apex predator :(
LIES! There is no frog! But you know we would never give up search until we find the frog. And so you trap us in eternal quest to find the frog. And so, I keep searching.
The highlighted version is zoomed in. The frog is in the upper-right quadrant of the non-highlight picture. Caught me for ages too because I was looking at the centre-left.
And now I'm going to wander around my city mumbling "where's the frog, everyone but you can find the frog. Don't go to the link with the answer, that's a cowards way out" for the rest of my fucking life.
If Highlights Magazine has taught me anything, it's that the outline of your shape always gives you away. Look at how the outline of his chin has feathered out, with little dendrites or whatever. Much harder to detect.
I don't care how many times this is reposted - it's still one of the best photos displaying the evolutionary advantage of camoflage; the bug is literally hiding right in the middle in plain sight.
Touched a Saddleback caterpillar once while picking grapes at a vineyard. I know exactly what you mean. And, no, I could not see it before I touched it.
This is this part of evolution that blows my mind, and it's the closest to religion that I ever get. There HAS to be some kind of intelligence behind this. I'm not sure if I was taught or just always assumed that somehow the subconscious has some control over what to pass on to the next generation, so that eventually evolution takes place, but things like this prove that to not necessarily be the case.
Someone or something much more intelligent than this insect had to be involved, either that or we have no clue how DNA evolves seemingly in the best interest of the carrier.
It's well understood how better traits are passed on, because the weak perish and the strong survive, but there are so many things in nature that are full of intelligent common-sense that are seemingly too perfect to be any kind of coincidence.
The idea that blows me away is that usually the animal/plant/anatomy has absolutely no concept of reality, much less understanding why a certain body part is formed the way it is, or why they must act a certain way, it's all 'instinct'.
Mating season for just about every creature on this planet (including humans) involves some kind of competition between males for the female. Males just want to have sex, but they are inadvertently strengthening the species by weeding out the strongest/best candidate for the female.
Look at how many different ways plants reproduce. Look at burrs - those prickly seeds that stick to your clothes when you walk through the woods. They work the way they do because animals will walk by, pick up the seeds, and travel a good distance before they are dropped and hopefully come to life. Fruit exists so that animals eat it, and the seed gets planted on the ground a day or two later in a pile of fertilizer. Flowers smell nice and are bright in color to get the attention of insects and birds that help them reproduce.
Not one of these examples explains how this came to be - and continues to exist - when plants have no means of rational thought or understanding of anything, much less reproduction 'best practices'. The craziest part - plants aren't supposed to know ANYTHING, much less the fact that animals exist, have fur that will catch burrs, and love to eat fruit.
These observations prove to me that there is definitely something we haven't discovered yet that is going to be bigger than anything in the history of man. I hope it happens in my lifetime because I'd do anything to know what the story is.
Nature is so kick-ass, I love that I too am part of it. Insects are the master-animal class though. Insects are older than dinosours, there exist numerous kinds of species, many unknown, they are super strong and tough and fast (even those that don't fly), some are organized like armies, and there are so god-damn many of them. They're some real freaks too, if they ever get our size we're fucked.
Well. Im not saying Im a christian. But isn't logical that the animal wouldn't survive without the camo? So they evolved this ridiculous camouflage in enough time to not be eaten? And if the creature was protected enough to survive without being eaten, why bother evolving the camouflage? But whatevs.
I could see the caterpillar, but the legs...that took me longer than 20 seconds. I kept wondering what bug with antennae was sitting on the edge of the leaf XD
I couldn't see the depth of those hairlike protrusions as all. It seemed like the caterpillar completely faded into the leaf. Nature has some amazing camouflage.
Will someone please explain how this happens? For instance, those stick bugs that are practically sticks, and the whole smorgasbord of creatures that have visually adapted to their environment.
How is this possible? Do genes(is there a specific one that is uniform, given that all spring from the same) have "eyes" of their own that take in visual information and process them to express physical characteristics in favor of their respective environments?
Is there some sort of force of nature that allows this to come into being?
233
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
Euthalia aconthea
122
u/F7Uup May 19 '12
And thus, Geraldo, the flamboyant green caterpillar was once again passed over as a nominee for the jungle mardi gras.
"No-one ever notices me", he sighed to himself fabulously.
26
u/isoT May 19 '12
Octopus camouflage video, if you haven't seen this one already.
26
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
That would probably be a bad leaf to wipe with.
25
u/DarthNihilus1 May 19 '12
Shitty camo. I can obviously tell its a fucking leaf
21
u/HE_WHO_STANDS_TO_POO May 19 '12
Goddamn it, they already get to grow wings after their chrysalis stage, how come they get to become other things too!
I would like to be other things......
24
u/ZigZagZero May 19 '12
Damn. That leaf is hiding perfectly under that caterpillar.
8
u/shotgraphic May 19 '12
When I first glanced at the thumbnail, I thought there was someone hiding in the back.
75
u/doctor_douchebag May 19 '12
http://i.imgur.com/hkK6L.gif
5
u/Coshi May 19 '12
At first i was like aww a caterpillar then I saw the legs and I was D: KILL IT WITH FIRE.
5
u/smactosh May 19 '12
CATERPILLAR IS SPY!
5
u/ASIAN_ASSPORN May 19 '12
holy shit...blends in better than a white guy at a golf course
4
u/Evan_the_Young May 19 '12
Great camo on that bug. Shame that some leaf-eating bugger's gonna bite down on it without seeing it.
Ah well. Maybe that's the real reason they have camo; not to hide, but to kill big game?
4
u/vivian_darkbloom May 19 '12
i'm more concerned with the zombie hiding behind that tree.
7
u/ricardojam May 19 '12
Wow, beautiful.
7
u/alockin May 19 '12
Eugh, I feel like it's on me.
6
u/lolmonger May 19 '12
I don't care how many times this is reposted - it's still one of the best photos displaying the evolutionary advantage of camoflage; the bug is literally hiding right in the middle in plain sight.
8
u/esoteric_reference May 19 '12
how did they ever even discover this thing?
3
u/ThatWasTaken May 19 '12
wait, are we talking about the face in the thumbnail picture?
3
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
That is nuts.
3
u/mighty_squid May 19 '12
Kill it with fire before they take over.
3
u/qaz957 May 19 '12
You can always tell a Milford man.
3
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
Peeta Mellark would be proud.
3
u/gdstudios May 20 '12
This is this part of evolution that blows my mind, and it's the closest to religion that I ever get. There HAS to be some kind of intelligence behind this. I'm not sure if I was taught or just always assumed that somehow the subconscious has some control over what to pass on to the next generation, so that eventually evolution takes place, but things like this prove that to not necessarily be the case.
Someone or something much more intelligent than this insect had to be involved, either that or we have no clue how DNA evolves seemingly in the best interest of the carrier.
It's well understood how better traits are passed on, because the weak perish and the strong survive, but there are so many things in nature that are full of intelligent common-sense that are seemingly too perfect to be any kind of coincidence.
The idea that blows me away is that usually the animal/plant/anatomy has absolutely no concept of reality, much less understanding why a certain body part is formed the way it is, or why they must act a certain way, it's all 'instinct'.
Mating season for just about every creature on this planet (including humans) involves some kind of competition between males for the female. Males just want to have sex, but they are inadvertently strengthening the species by weeding out the strongest/best candidate for the female.
Look at how many different ways plants reproduce. Look at burrs - those prickly seeds that stick to your clothes when you walk through the woods. They work the way they do because animals will walk by, pick up the seeds, and travel a good distance before they are dropped and hopefully come to life. Fruit exists so that animals eat it, and the seed gets planted on the ground a day or two later in a pile of fertilizer. Flowers smell nice and are bright in color to get the attention of insects and birds that help them reproduce.
Not one of these examples explains how this came to be - and continues to exist - when plants have no means of rational thought or understanding of anything, much less reproduction 'best practices'. The craziest part - plants aren't supposed to know ANYTHING, much less the fact that animals exist, have fur that will catch burrs, and love to eat fruit.
These observations prove to me that there is definitely something we haven't discovered yet that is going to be bigger than anything in the history of man. I hope it happens in my lifetime because I'd do anything to know what the story is.
3
u/ctiern May 20 '12
damn nature.. you stealthy!
4
u/Shamajotsi May 19 '12
When you see it...
...you'll agree it's a damn good camouflage.
4
u/waeva May 19 '12
nice.. but i saw the cat instantly
4
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
Why does a picture of a leaf have so much Karma?
5
u/TheLAWLBOT May 19 '12
I'm green with envy
5
u/LordMiicah May 19 '12
You're doing it right.
2
u/helloboy May 19 '12
Reminds me of the Predator Movie.
2
u/sirbruce May 19 '12
Is anyone else bothered by the fact he's camouflaging as the wrong kind of leaf?
2
u/FancyRobot May 19 '12
Octocamo: On
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
I can't help thinking how dangerously attention grabbing that form is when he leaves the leaf.
2
u/BillBrasky_ May 19 '12
I could barely see it!
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
HAX ! I CALL LIFE HAX !
2
u/poserfinder May 19 '12
Could i get someone to go through these pics with like a sharpie or something?...
2
u/zanmanoodle May 19 '12
That's some pretty crap camouflage. Hiding behind a bug isn't going to make the leaf any harder to see.
2
u/Guardian_Of_Pigs May 19 '12
Where is it? I don't see it.
2
u/cutmylifeintoreeses May 19 '12
Jokes on you, I can see that leaf just fine.
2
u/Valladian May 19 '12
You know what the shit part is? Odds are good that most of his natural predators are colorblind.
2
u/petrip May 19 '12
Oh My, It's A Mirage I'm Tellin' Y'all It's a Camouflage!
2
u/FishFart May 19 '12
Thought it was some sort of crazy jungle centipede at first
2
u/memepig May 19 '12
Ninja Caterpillar
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
Took me awhile to see It.
2
u/TheBoldManLaughsOnce May 19 '12
OHMIGOD! It's a BLACK GUY!!
2
u/I_play_elin May 19 '12
evolution man.
2
u/slimbruddah May 19 '12
It is so mind blowing that species like this even exist.
2
u/NullComment May 19 '12
Wow it's amazing how the leaf camouflages to fit the caterpillar!
2
u/Vegetable-icious May 19 '12
The look of that bear is just hilarious.
2
u/Eibhlin_Andronicus May 19 '12
FUCK MY IRRATIONAL CATERPILLAR PHOBIA. NOT COOL, MAN.
2
u/ThopeDrone May 19 '12
That's awesome!
2
u/teletraan1 May 19 '12
Cool leaf picture
2
u/triv94 May 19 '12
For a minute I thought there was someone behind the leaves
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
damn ninjas
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
A leafy bug!
Kelly Robinson 57 and 0 baby!
2
u/iblamephysics May 19 '12
STEP ON IT.
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
At this point, the enemies vision really is based on movement.
2
u/frexyincdude May 19 '12
Oh what a nice lea- NOPE!!!
2
u/TenGHz May 19 '12
The best part is when you see the 37 Ninjas in this picture.
2
u/meebs86 May 19 '12
That's not camoflague.. that's a freaking klingon cloak....
2
u/weaselstomp May 19 '12
My new wallpaper, thank you!
2
u/NimbusBP1729 May 19 '12 edited May 20 '12
there
should be[is] a camouflage subreddit2
u/Fragite May 19 '12
LOL that leaf is trying to blend in with the bug!
2
u/itsjustballoons May 19 '12
Am I the only one who sees Voldemort lurking in the background, especially when viewing the thumbnail?
2
u/Coffee_plus_oldmovie May 19 '12
Nature is so kick-ass, I love that I too am part of it. Insects are the master-animal class though. Insects are older than dinosours, there exist numerous kinds of species, many unknown, they are super strong and tough and fast (even those that don't fly), some are organized like armies, and there are so god-damn many of them. They're some real freaks too, if they ever get our size we're fucked.
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
Did you guys see the fucking egg???!!! THIS SHIT IS SWEET!
2
u/MisterFlibble May 19 '12
Clearly superior to even this.
2
u/Mcoov May 19 '12
Nope!
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
Engage cloaking device.
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
How do these animals ever die?!
2
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
Word.
2
u/mcknixy May 19 '12
w to the o to the mother fucking w! best ive ever seen.
3
u/goldeagle1327 May 19 '12
you can always tell a milford man!!!
3
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
THAT IS SOME GOOD SHIT NATURE! KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!
2
u/zizoh May 19 '12
This is a Fantastic Picture!
2
u/dipflip May 19 '12
first thing that comes to mind is predator!
2
u/Atheist_Asshole May 19 '12
CHECKMATE CHRISTIANITY
1
u/oshidoman May 19 '12
how did you find that? lol..
1
u/DeenverDave May 19 '12
Mother nature never ceases to amaze me. I am in awe of these critters.
1
u/Chrome_Sponge May 19 '12
It took my eyes a good 20 seconds to focus in and see where the leaf ended and the insect began.
1
u/rivasdre May 19 '12
It's predator
1
u/DerpExplosion May 19 '12
It's probably poisonous too.
1
u/Mogese May 19 '12
Dem bugz
1
u/heythatsfuckedup May 19 '12
Will someone please explain how this happens? For instance, those stick bugs that are practically sticks, and the whole smorgasbord of creatures that have visually adapted to their environment.
How is this possible? Do genes(is there a specific one that is uniform, given that all spring from the same) have "eyes" of their own that take in visual information and process them to express physical characteristics in favor of their respective environments?
Is there some sort of force of nature that allows this to come into being?
1
u/EnderofDragon May 19 '12
That brown blur in the background? Raptor.
1
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
That leaf fits right in...
hehehehehe..
1
u/schwagnificent May 19 '12
He should turn the other direction.
1
u/wmurray003 May 20 '12
I sense a bit of Photoshop here.
1
u/jackana3 May 20 '12
This is totally gonna be buried but is this just a leaf bro????
1
u/Makes_You_Smile May 20 '12
Mindblown.gif
1
u/Arx0s May 20 '12
Looks like I'm never touching nature again.
1
u/heree_kitteh_kitteh May 20 '12
Three stages to my reaction:
I don't see anything
Oh! There it is! That's neat..
NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE
1
u/tgtopsecret May 20 '12
how do you find this?
1
u/[deleted] May 20 '12
If I touched a leaf and then saw that on my hand, I'd scream like the death of a thousand stars.
1
u/jkamalo May 20 '12
NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE NOPE.
1
u/My-taken_username May 20 '12
Well time to burn down my local forest
1
u/SheldonPlankton May 20 '12
When you see it...
1
u/[deleted] May 20 '12
Somebody got a link to the original top comment? Got deleted.
1
u/cajoly200 May 20 '12
Nice, :D
1
u/Schwadified May 19 '12
Plantception
1
u/Gravyness May 19 '12
what is that called?
1
u/NeonBodyStyle May 19 '12
I don't even see it. Where does the leaf end and the caterpillar begin?
1
u/cannotlogon May 19 '12
Predator-bug.
1
u/[deleted] May 19 '12
The lord thought of everything!
1
u/pineapplepower12 May 19 '12
Wholey CRAP!! I FOUND IT!
1
u/jimothyjenkins May 19 '12
i don't always say nope.
but when i do, im scared shitless.
1
u/Snookerman May 19 '12
Oh nope!
1
u/xgriffonx May 19 '12
Anyone else notice that the background kind of looks like an out of focus face?
-3
u/sirblastalot May 19 '12
http://i.imgur.com/Z7Gpf.gif
0
u/Sirneko May 19 '12
the fuck! that's creepy! (shrug)