Camouflage is a classic example of a trait wherein animals respond to natural selection to avoid predation or attract prey. This unique phenomenon has attracted significant recent attention and the rapid development of integrative research methods is facilitating advances in our understanding of the in-depth genetic mechanisms of camouflage. In this review article, we revisit camouflage definitions and strategies and then we examine the underlying mechanisms of the two most common forms of camouflage, crypsis and masquerade, that have recently been elucidated using multiple approaches. We also discuss unresolved questions related to camouflage. Ultimately, we highlight the implications of camouflage for informing various key issues in ecology and evolution.

伪装是动物响应自然选择以避免捕食或吸引猎物的特征的典型例子。这种独特的现象最近引起了人们的广泛关注，综合研究方法的快速发展正在促进我们对伪装的深入遗传机制的理解的进步。在这篇评论文章中，我们重新审视了伪装的定义和策略，然后研究了两种最常见的伪装形式（隐秘和伪装）的基本机制，最近已经使用多种方法阐明了这两种形式。我们还讨论与伪装相关的未解决问题。最后，我们强调了伪装对于了解生态学和进化中的各种关键问题的影响。