How do animals develop camouflage, when they don’t know what other animals see?

Question

I’ve always admired the patterns of tigers, leopards, mantis shrimp, butterflies, etc. But I’ve always wondered how and why they become like that.

In: 6

Answer 1

What I’m curious about are things like cuttlefish and octopus, that have active camouflage. It’s one thing to evolve coloration that disguises you, or blends into your preferred habitat, it’s another entirely to evolve the ability to change your coloration and even texture. Obviously some processing is going on, but how conscious of it are they?