Chameleon turquoise, and purple. Chameleon skin has a superficial layer which contains pigments, and under the layer are cells with guanine crystals. Chameleons change colour by changing the space between the guanine crystals, which changes the wavelength of light reflected off the crystals which changes the colour of the skin. Colour change in chameleons has functions in camouflage, but most commonly in social signaling and in reactions to temperature and other conditions. The relative importance of these functions varies with the circumstances, as well as the species. Colour change signals a chameleon's physiological condition and intentions to other chameleons. Chameleons tend
Camouflage to the Utopian Arcadia of poetry and art, and the "memento mori" Latin phrase "Et in Arcadia ego" which recurs in Hamilton Finlay's work. In science fiction, "Camouflage" is a novel about shapeshifting alien beings by Joe Haldeman. The word is used more figuratively in works of literature such as Thaisa Frank's collection of stories of love and loss, "A Brief History of Camouflage". Camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see (crypsis), or by disguising them as something else (mimesis). Examples include the