Cuttlefish — by far the coolest of the cephalopods — are brilliant at camouflage, to the point where they'll actually use their hands and body orientation to mimic objects around them. For the first time, we know that they are relying on visual cues to do so.
Cuttlefish, like many animals, adjust their body's pose and posture to better blend in with the world around them, demonstrating remarkable mimicry.
By placing cuttlefish in front of alternating black and white lines oriented at 0°, 45°, and 90°, the researchers were able to show that these creatures use visual cues from the world around them to adjust their limbs to blend in better. In these pictures, you can see that the cephalopods are changing the direction of their arms to match the lines behind them. Combine this skill with their incredible color-changing abilities, and you get a feel for just how well these guys can blend in.
Top photo via Fuck Yeah, Cuttlefish!