Biology Department, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina.
Integr Comp Biol. 2003 Aug;43(4):580-90. doi: 10.1093/icb/43.4.580.
While transparency, cryptic coloration, and counterillumination are all highly successful cryptic strategies for pelagic species, they become less effective when confronted with varying optical conditions. Transparent species are susceptible to detection by reflections from their body surface, particularly at shallow depths. Colored and mirrored species are vulnerable to detection when viewed from certain angles, or at certain times of day. Counterilluminating species must cope with the changes in the angular distribution and spectra of downwelling light at different depths. In all cases the vulnerabilities are more pronounced at shallow depths and essentially negligible at depths greater than 200 m. The results suggest interesting adaptations both for crypsis (e.g., anti-reflection coatings, variable coloration, variable filters for photophores) and for visual detection (e.g., circling, crepuscular predation), all of which are potentially fruitful topics for future research.
虽然透明度、隐蔽色和反向照明都是对深海物种非常成功的隐蔽策略，但当它们遇到不同的光学条件时，这些策略的效果就会降低。透明物种容易被其身体表面的反射所探测到，尤其是在较浅的深度。有颜色和反光的物种在从特定角度或在一天中的特定时间观察时容易被探测到。反向照明的物种必须应对不同深度下下降光的角度分布和光谱的变化。在所有情况下，脆弱性在较浅的深度更为明显，而在大于 200 米的深度则基本上可以忽略不计。研究结果表明，对于伪装（例如，抗反射涂层、可变颜色、发光器官的可变滤光片）和视觉探测（例如，盘旋、黄昏捕食）都有有趣的适应性，这些都是未来研究的潜在有价值的课题。
