" In other words, many insects are camouflaged in their environment, which helps them remain undetected. This sounds like a simple idea, but ecologists, and insect biologists have identified many different forms of cryptic coloration that deserve discussion.
Insects that exhibit generalized cryptic coloration simply blend in with their environment (Evans, p. 309). For example, many grasshoppers are green in color, and therefore, are less noticeable in their grassy environment. This simple strategy is often inadequate for evading predation. Therefore, many organisms exhibit more complicated forms of cryptic coloration. For example, according to Edmund (p. 7) even an organism that is exactly the color of its environment is detectable because of the darker color on its underside produced by the body's shadow. In response to this, many insects exhibit counter shading, wherein the underside of the body is a lighter shade of the cryptic color, and when seen in the shadow of the insect's body appears to be the same color, and blends much more effectively with the surrounding environment.
Another shortcoming of simple cryptic coloration is that very few environments are exactly one color. Normally, an organism's environment is composed of many different things that vary in color. Furthermore, insect prey can be recognized by its body outline, or distinguishable shapes such as a head, or limbs, regardless of how well the cryptic color matches the environment. Therefore, many insects display "disruptive coloration" as part of their camouflage. In this scenario, distinguishable characteristics such as eyes or even body shape are de-emphasized by splashes of color that do not coincide with body structures. As an example, Edmunds (p. 8) claims that many insects will have a prominent stripe covering its eyes, or traveling uninterrupted by legs or body segments down the entire length of the organism.
