Camouflage of a caterpillar

A few months ago I saw a caterpillar beautifully camouflaged on a shrub. It was resting near a dry leaf. The caterpillar had the colour and texture of the dry leaf only. When I rushed to bring my camera, it had moved away from the dry leaf. And this is the video of the caterpillar.

One thing which is beyond my comprehension is, 'How these creatures know that they have similar colour and texture of the part of a plant, where they take shelter.' The camouflage is either for self protection or for attacking a prey by ambush. Aren't they clever than us, human beings?

Dendrobium orchids

Do not buy any orchid plants even if they are in full bloom or showing no sign of wilting when healthy white roots not growing above the planting medium.

Dendrobium orchids have thick spongy roots. These roots are capable of absorbing moisture through humid air. These roots cannot tolerate compact and constantly wet/soggy planting medium; they need good aeration for respiration. That is why these plants are never planted in soil. The planting medium for them can be mixture of brickbats, charcoal and a few pieces of coco chips (pieces of coconut outer skin with fibers attached to them). In nature, they grow on tree trunks or even on dead wood. They are not parasites; they cling to plants only for support. Such plants are called as epiphytes.

Do not buy any orchid plants even if they are in full bloom or showing no sign of wilting when healthy white roots not growing above the planting medium.

Crow pheasant - भारद्वाज.

Crow pheasant or Greater Coucal (Centropus sinensis) is a large bird compared to its other close relatives - Cuckoo birds. It is native to India and some other countries of Asia. These birds are seen in jungles but are quite common in many city gardens. Though quite large in size, they are weak fliers. When on trees, they are seen mostly on lower branches. Quite often one can see them walking on ground or walking among tree branches.

Adult bird

Feathers on their body are black but the wings are chestnut brown. They have long tail feathers. Eyes of this bird are red. Young birds have speckled white spots on the black feathers. It feeds mainly on insects, caterpillars, snails, small reptiles and eggs /chicks of other birds too.  It also consumes fruits. Its call is booming, something like that of Langurs. Quite often duets of male & female birds can be heard, with female call being a bit softer. While calling they have habit of bending down their heads (like old humans coughing). In many parts of India its sighting is considered as a good omen. Common name for it in Marathi is ‘Bharadwaj’ 

Butterfly caterpillar with 5 pairs of legs?

We all know that the insects have 3 pairs of legs. The photograph is of a caterpillar of a butterfly; as such it must have only 3 pairs of legs. But in the image posted, you can clearly see that this caterpillar has 5 pairs of legs. Can you guess why?

5 pairs of legs?

It is true that all insects have 3 pairs of legs. What we see as 5 pairs of legs are not legs at all. They are called as 'Pseudolegs' -- false legs. With these false legs the caterpillar grips the surface on which it crawls. Keep a caterpillar on your hand and you will understand how firmly these pseudolegs hold your skin. True legs of an insect caterpillar are quite small and are incapable of gripping and for walking. At maturity, pseudolegs disappear and only true legs remain. In the caterpillar stage true legs are quite small. You might have notices that even newborn human babies have very short hands; if raised they just reach the head.

It has only 3 pairs of legs