Many animals are countershaded, that means that their dorsal sides are darker than their ventral sides. The coloration sample happens in animals terrestrial and aquatic alike and is among the most typical camouflage patterns within the animal kingdom (it was even current in dinosaurs). In the case of rock-hopping ibexes, countershading permits the tawny creatures to mix in with the rusty mountain slopes they inhabit.

Great white sharks advanced the identical technique. Viewed from above, they mix in with the darkish depths of the ocean; from under, their gentle undersides mix in with the daylight shining by way of the water’s floor.