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Some animals can change how they look to blend into their surroundings or resemble another creature—but they do not literally transform into a different species. Octopuses and cuttlefish can alter skin color, pattern and even texture, while the mimic octopus adds posture and movement to its imitations. A land-based example uses a different strategy: juvenile lizards whose fixed appearance and gait resemble noxious beetles.
What does “shape-shifting” mean in animals?
Here, shape-shifting is shorthand for changing or using appearance in ways that affect how another animal sees you. It can mean matching a background, breaking up an outline, displaying a warning, communicating, or resembling a different species. These are distinct strategies, not literal transformations. Cephalopod camouflage can range from background matching to disruptive coloration, which makes an animal’s outline harder to read (Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 2009).
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How do octopuses and cuttlefish change color and texture?
Color and pattern
Cephalopod skin contains chromatophores: pigment sacs whose visibility changes as muscles controlled by nerves expand or contract them. Some species also have iridophores, which reflect metallic-looking colors, and leucophores, which reflect or scatter light from the environment. Together, these structures help produce changes in color and pattern (Smithsonian Ocean, “How Octopuses and Squids Change Color”; Smithsonian Ocean, “Cephalopods: Octopus, Squid, Cuttlefish, and Nautilus”).
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Some octopuses and cuttlefish can raise skin projections called papillae, changing a smooth surface into bumps or spikes. This adds texture to camouflage, helping an animal resemble features of its surroundings rather than relying on color alone. A 2018 study of cuttlefish found that neural signals control papilla extension and relaxation; the structures can extend and retract rapidly, and muscle properties allow them to remain raised. The authors proposed that sustained tension may reduce energy use, but the study record does not quantify any saving (Gonzalez-Bellido et al., iScience, 2018).
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Which animals mimic other species?
Mimic octopus
The mimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus) combines skin changes with arm positions and movement. Smithsonian Ocean describes reported imitations that include flounders, lionfish and sea snakes; examples include a sea-snake-like posture and lionfish-like swimming. Because Smithsonian pages give differing totals for the number of species it imitates, it is more accurate to describe the range of examples than to give a definitive count (Smithsonian Ocean; Smithsonian Ocean).
Pharaoh cuttlefish
Smithsonian Ocean reports that the pharaoh cuttlefish can mimic a hermit crab’s color, behavior and shape. This is a resemblance created through appearance and behavior—not a transformation into a crab (Smithsonian Ocean).
Do any land animals resemble dangerous species?
Juvenile Eremias lugubris lizards have been described as resembling noxious Anthia beetles in color, gait and size. Unlike cephalopod camouflage, this is not a rapid change in skin or body shape: the lizard’s juvenile appearance and way of moving provide the resemblance. The 1975 paper indexed by PubMed proposed that the mimicry reduces predation; that protective effect should be understood as the paper’s interpretation, not a universal guarantee (“Natural selection for juvenile lizards mimicking noxious beetles,” Science, 1975).
Is every color change camouflage?
No. Cephalopods also change appearance to communicate or warn. Smithsonian Ocean describes blue-ringed octopuses displaying bright blue rings when provoked, and Caribbean reef squid using different colors in social interactions. A conspicuous display can serve a different purpose from blending into a background, so a color change should not automatically be called camouflage (Smithsonian Ocean).
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How the examples differ
| Animal or group | What changes or creates the resemblance | Function described in the sources |
|---|---|---|
| Octopuses and cuttlefish | Skin pigment patterns; in some species, raised papillae alter texture. | Camouflage, including background matching and disruptive coloration. |
| Mimic octopus | Skin appearance, arm posture and movement. | Resemblance to other marine animals. |
| Pharaoh cuttlefish | Color, behavior and shape. | Reported resemblance to a hermit crab. |
| Juvenile Eremias lugubris | Juvenile color, gait and size; no rapid transformation is described. | Resemblance to noxious beetles; the 1975 paper proposed reduced predation. |
These examples show several ways appearance can mislead a viewer, but they do not establish a ranking of which animal is most effective. The sources do not provide a controlled comparison across species.
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