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Keep looking … there’s another reptile hiding out here. Yep, it’s a little gecko.
Leaf-tailed geckos are among the masters of disguise in the animal world. Their flat tails and mottled coloring help them blend in with their surroundings. They also have fringed flaps running along the sides of the body and their lower jaws; these flatten against a surface to obscure the lizard's outline, according to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute.
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
2 eyes open
Only a skilled eye would catch this creature, hiding out on the seafloor.
The leopard flounder, also called the panther flounder (Bothus pantherinus), can easily blend in with the coarse sand because of its patterned body. And luckily, both of its eyes are on the left side of its body, so when buried beneath the sand, this clever fish can still watch out for predators.
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
On the hunt?
As if a ghost, this lion almost appears to be part of its savanna habitat. The female lion (only males wear manes) is the primary hunter for the pride, with gals working together to take down large beasts such as antelopes, zebras and wildebeest, National Geographic reported.
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
Lost in prayer
Don't move ... perfect! A master of disguise, this praying mantis mimics parts of a dead leaf.
(Image credit: Fabrizio Moglia/Getty)
Built to hide
There’s life hiding out in this desert scape. The only species of ibex (a type of mountain goat) that can thrive in arid regions of the world, the Nubian ibex is literally built for its habitat. Besides having a coat that blends in with all things dry and brown, this mountain goat has a shiny coat that reflects the intense sunlight in places like northeastern Africa and Saudi Arabia, according to the San Diego Zoo. Their agile bodies allow the Nubian ibex to climb up and down super-steep rocky cliffs.
(Image credit: iStockphoto/Getty)
Tiny but tough
This little cutie-pie is making like a dusty rock.
The American pika is one of the toughest tiny mammals, able to live its entire life in alpine terrain, what the National Wildlife Federation calls "no-man's-land above tree line."
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
Dainty hider
As if donned with a gown of ruby jewels, this pygmy seahorse holds onto its coral home for dear life. That's right, the seahorse is too small (less than an inch tall) to handle water currents and can't swim well. Luckily, they can attach to a gorgonian coral and catch bits of food washing by, according to SeahorseWorlds.
(Image credit: Abdullah Al-Eisa/Getty)
You'll never find me ...
This creepy-crawly seems to have become one with the bark of a tree. Seriously, can you find the eight-legged creature hanging out here?
(Image credit: Achim Schuelke/EyeEm/Getty)
Out on a limb
Let's go out on a limb here and say that this critter knows how to hide. The spider pulls its legs up close to its carapace to make like a dead twig.
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
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Jeanna Bryner is managing editor of Scientific American. Previously she was editor in chief of Live Science and, prior to that, an editor at Scholastic's Science World magazine. Bryner has an English degree from Salisbury University, a master's degree in biogeochemistry and environmental sciences from the University of Maryland and a graduate science journalism degree from New York University. She has worked as a biologist in Florida, where she monitored wetlands and did field surveys for endangered species, including the gorgeous Florida Scrub Jay. She also received an ocean sciences journalism fellowship from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. She is a firm believer that science is for everyone and that just about everything can be viewed through the lens of science.
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