Most birds, in addition to evasion use camouflage as a part of their strategy for avoiding predation. In the tropics many brightly colored birds blend into the multi-colored forest with all of the fruit, flowers and otherwise colorful plants. In more temperate climates where much of the habitat and cover for birds is more subdued in color, many birds, especially the females who more often spend time incubating eggs, tend to be drably colored. Some of these birds can accurately be described as having cryptic coloration. The definition of cryptic as an adjective on Dictionary.com is:
adjective, Also, cryptical
- mysterious in meaning; puzzling; ambiguous:
a cryptic message. - abrupt; terse; short:
a cryptic note. - secret; occult:
a cryptic writing. - involving or using cipher, code, etc.
- Zoology. fitted for concealing; serving to camouflage.
I find cryptic coloration in birds as a attractive trait, making them more difficult to see, identify, and especially to photograph. Here are a few examples of cryptically colored birds I was able to photograph today on my birding at Mount's Road and Edmond's Marsh in Dupont, WA.
This is about as good a look as you can hope for of the ubiquitous Marsh Wren. They are found just about everywhere a Cattail Marsh is found in most of North America.
Fortunately Marsh Wrens are very vocal, and we know they are around long before we see them usually. This is a more typical way to see a Marsh Wren.
How many Mourning Doves can you see in this photo?
Here is a Mourning Dove out in the open to see more clearly.
In waterfowl often the male is brightly colored but the females are often much more drab and can easily disappear into the edges of a body of water. These Mallards are a good example.
One of the bonuses of getting out birding, is seeing other wildlife, including this Mule Deer at the Eagle's Pride Golf Course. Deer blend into the forest well, but in the open they can make great photography subjects, and are fun to see.
A beautiful day in the Pacific Northwest.
Good Birding. Steem on!