Animal coloration is the general appearance of an animal resulting from the reflection or emission of light from its surfaces. Some animals are brightly coloured, while others are hard to see.

Fundamental research on the production and perception of animal coloration is contributing to breakthroughs in the design of new materials (cosmetics, textiles, paints, optical coatings, security labels) and new technologies (cameras, sensors, optical devices, robots, biomedical implants).

Coloration, in biology, the general appearance of an organism as determined by the quality and quantity of light that is reflected or emitted from its surfaces.

Animal coloration is a trait with strong implications for adaptation and specialization, and the potential effects that plasticity of this trait have on these processes are of fundamental importance for the animals.

Aug 4, 2017 · The interdisciplinary field of animal coloration is growing rapidly, spanning questions about the diverse ways that animals use pigments and structures to generate color, the underlying genetics and epigenetics, the perception of color, how color information is integrated with information from other senses, and general principles underlying ...

There are two basic types of deceptive coloration: (1) concealing coloration, or camouflage, in which the organism blends into its surroundings; and (2) mimicry, in which the organism is not hidden but rather presents a false identity by its resemblance to another species.

Animal colouration is generally regarded as a sort of protective adaptation, where many animals resemble the backgrounds against which they live.

Color variation in mammals is primarily determined by two factors: (i) pigment regulation, altering the type, density and/or distribution of pigments along individual hairs; or (ii) pigment patterning, altering the spatial distribution of pigmentation across the body.

This issue provides an entry point to recent developments in the main areas of animal coloration research: colour production, perception, function and evolution, and application.

Animal colour patterns are unusually accessible for study and experimental manipulation, and consequently make a superb model system for understanding evolution because they consist of multiple components that have measurable multiple interacting functions.