'Stealth' thanks to the sun

Researchers in Texas (USA) have said they have discovered a new fish, known to disguise in the ocean through the reaction of the skin under sunlight.

Lookdown Fish

According to scientists at the University of Texas at Austin, fish called Lookdown camouflage themselves because of the complex manipulation of their polarized light on their skin.

Some Lookdown fish were caught in a laboratory tank and the sun simulated the day. Observe that fish skin absorbs polarized light and changes color at different times of the day.

The new study is funded by the US Navy and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.Knowing how the fish lookdown disguises will help develop camouflage technology to avoid the enemy in the ocean.

UPI news agency quoted Biology Professor Molly Cummings as saying that no object is hidden in three-dimensional space, so the creature must know how to mix naturally in seawater.