Can you see me?

Grimy and feeling a little chilly, my friend Lakhan and I were sitting down for a welcome cup of tea after the day’s work. Drawing up the chairs, Lakhan was about to plop himself when a glint of black caught my eye against the light cream color of the chair.

“Stop!” I said.

He jumped up and looked down on the chair. I moved in for a closer look. What we saw was astonishing!

I don’t know what species of frog this is, but I was fascinated. I turned around to the chair I was about to sit on, and this time carefully observing the surface. I wasn’t disappointed.

The unbelievable ability to camouflage

Camouflage (also called cryptic coloration) is a wonderful survival technique that several members of the animal kingdom resort to keep their position and movement in the wild discreet. This helps them escape predators and, conversely, also sneap up on their prey.

These frogs were probably using their camouflage for both: escaping common predators like snakes in the jungle while also hoping to grab some juicy flies as the evening fell.

They were also vigorously sticking to the surface of the chair. No matter how much we shook the chairs, they refused to let go. This perhaps helps them avoid being dragged away if a snake or a bird tried to snatch them off the chair (or the ground) with a lose grip. We decided to let them be, got out a few more chairs and enjoyed our cup of tea with them.

It feels good to be back so close to nature again after two and a half years!

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You might like Monkey tails, another one of my close (and perhaps more dangerous) encounters with nature.