Perfectly hidden – Issue #80

Hello Explorer,
This weekend I came across a herbivore enjoying one of my fig trees leaves. This little critter, however, has been wreaking havoc in this tree for quite some time, but I could just never find it! The camouflage of this little bug is so astonishing that I am sure I looked directly at it many times, but never saw it.
What is this bug? A juvenile Blue-legged Sylvan Katydid (Zabalius ophthalmicus). The species is herbivorous and from my observations I can now with certainty say that they will without a doubt consume Peter’s Fig (Ficus petersii).
This katydid is so well camouflaged that it hides in plain sight due to its perfect camouflage. As you can see it is the same green as the leaves, and it even has a white line down the centre of its back, which looks exactly like the midvein of the leaf that it is sitting on!
The reason for this perfect camouflage is the fact that these Katydids spend their entire life in trees. The female will lay her eggs inside the tree, and from the moment the eggs hatch the nymphs will spend their entire life on the tree. Once they moult into their adult form, they gain the ability to fly, and will then travel to other trees in search of a mate firstly and subsequently the females will fly to suitable host trees to lay their eggs in.
Thus, they have adapted to look like leaves to hide in plain sight from potential predators, increasing their survival rate.
Not only do they eat a leaf, but they also look like one too! Have you ever seen an animal or insect camouflage this well? If so, what animal was it? Do you still remember how long it took you to find it or who pointed it out to you?

If you would like to send me a message with your answers, feel free to do so on Instagram @abugmanslife or via email to [email protected].