When we think of the color green, our minds often go to plants, trees, and grass. However, green is an important color in the animal kingdom as well. While no animals are entirely green, many species have evolved to display green coloring as camouflage, allowing them to blend into their natural environments. Some animals can even change their coloring to become more green. In this article, we will explore some of the most vividly green animals in the world and understand the special adaptations that allow them to utilize this vibrant hue.
Green Tree Python
One of the most iconic green animals is the green tree python, a non-venomous snake found in tropical regions of Australia, Indonesia, and New Guinea. As their name suggests, green tree pythons spend most of their time coiled amongst branches in the rainforest canopy. Their bright green scales allow them to perfectly blend in to foliage, concealing them from potential prey and predators.
Green tree pythons have the remarkable ability to change their color based on their mood and environment. During the day when resting, they appear vivid green. But at night, the snakes adopt a darker brownish or bluish hue to better camouflage against tree trunks. When threatened or agitated, they may turn yellowish or white. And in captivity, individuals can be seen with hints of blue, turquoise, or yellow on their scales. This color changing ability comes from small structures in their skin called chromatophores that contain pigments. By expanding and retracting these chromatophores, green tree pythons can actively modify their coloring.
Emerald Tree Boa
Closely related to the green tree python is the emerald tree boa, another brightly colored snake that inhabits the rainforests of South America. With distinctive neon green and yellow patterning, these snakes are adept climbers that coil themselves around branches high up in the canopy. The vivid coloration helps them remain concealed from potential predators like birds of prey that may be searching for a meal from above.
Interestingly, baby emerald tree boas look quite different from the adults. Hatchlings are born with striking orange, black, and white banding. But as they mature, their scales gradually shift to the iconic emerald green that gives the species its name. It takes around 2-3 years for the full green coloration to develop. Like the green tree python, the emerald tree boa’s green scales come from specialized chromatophores in its skin that contain green pigments. By regulating these cells, the snakes can fine tune their color to best match their surroundings.
Green Iguanas
Another famously green reptile is the green iguana. Native to the tropical rainforests of Central and South America, these large lizards often reach over 6 feet long from head to tail. Green iguanas take their name from their distinctive green skin, which can range from bright lime green to deeper forest greens mottled with black markings depending on the individual. Younger iguanas appear more vividly green, while older individuals take on darker olive and brownish tones.
The green pigments in iguanas come from specialized cells called iridophores. Like chromatophores, iridophores contain pigments the lizard can manipulate to change its skin coloring. However iridophores specifically contain plates of crystalline purines that reflect particular wavelengths of light to generate iridescent green and blue hues. By adjusting these plates of crystals, iguanas can tune their coloration based on mood, temperature, and other factors. The green coloring helps them disappear against the rainforest vegetation as they search for leafy greens to eat.
Green Sea Turtles
In the ocean, green sea turtles have adapted green skin to help them avoid detection. Green sea turtles are large marine reptiles that can grow over 3 feet long and weigh up to 350 pounds. Hatchlings emerge with mostly black skin and shells. But as they mature, their shells gradually shift to brown, olive, and finally vivid green hues in adults. Their skin changes as well, taking on green and subtle yellow markings.
This green coloration serves as effective ocean camouflage, allowing green sea turtles to blend in with seagrass beds and coral reefs as they search for food. Potential predators swimming above struggle to distinguish the green turtle shells against the green ocean backdrop. The green pigmentation comes from fat and carotenoid pigments obtained through the turtle’s herbivorous diet of seagrasses and algae. The more green the turtle eats, the greener its shell and skin becomes.
Green Anole Lizard
The green anole is a small lizard native to the southeastern United States. Ranging from just 4-8 inches long, these little reptiles have the ability to change color from brown to vivid green. Under warm conditions or in sunlight, the lizard’s skin will appear vibrant green. But when cooler or stressed, it quickly shifts to a drab brown. This color change is controlled by specialized cells called chromatophores in the lizard’s skin that rapidly expand and contract to alter the skin’s hue.
Going green serves several purposes for the anole. It allows it to better regulate body temperature by absorbing more solar radiation when cool. Turning green also provides camouflage against foliage as the lizard hunts for insect prey. Interestingly, the green anole’s throat fan remains pink or reddish even when the rest of the body changes. This likely helps with visual signaling and communication between other lizards. The contrast makes their displays easier to see.
Parrot Species
Parrots are birds well known for their brightly colored plumage, and green is a very common hue. Many parrot species exhibit brilliant green feathers, including green-winged macaws, Monk parakeets, and the Green-thighed parrot. The green in their wings, tails, and bodies provides excellent camouflage when perched in tropical forest canopies.
Parrot feathers don’t actually contain any green pigment. Their green iridescence comes from precise nanoscale structures in the feathers that refract and reflect specific wavelengths of light. The shape, arrangement, and spacing of these nanostructures determine what color is produced through this light scattering effect. It is essentially the same mechanism that produces colorful reflections off compact discs or soap bubbles. The parrots can control these nanostructures to fine tune their green hues.
Katydids
Katydids are a family of large insects related to crickets and grasshoppers. There are over 6,400 species of katydids, and many exhibit leaf green coloring that allows them to disappear against foliage. Species like the green katydid have adapted the shape of their wings to perfectly resemble leaves, while their leaf-green bodies blend seamlessly into the background. Other katydids have leaf-like protrusions or veined wing patterns to enhance the camouflage.
Katydids don’t produce green pigments themselves. Instead, their exoskeleton contains layers of tissues that interfere with specific wavelengths of light to filter out colors except green. As the katydid grows and molts its exoskeleton, these tissues change in thickness, altering the interference effect. This allows the green coloration to be fine-tuned as the insect matures.
Green Lacewings
Lacewings are delicate winged insects known for their extensive veined wings. Several species exhibit pale green bodies and wings that provide excellent camouflage against leaves and stems as they hunt for soft-bodied insect prey. Green lacewings like the common green lacewing have transparent wings with just a slight green tint. But the more vividly green goldeneyed lacewings have scales on their wings that produce a shimmery green iridescence.
The wings contain layers of chitin that interfere with light waves to filter out all colors except green wavelengths. The spacing between these wing layers determines the exact hue of green that is produced. Some species can even adjust the spacing to tune the green color during their development. The green appearance makes them very difficult to spot against vegetation as they sneak up on prey.
Praying Mantises
Praying mantises are formidable ambush predators known for their spiked raptorial forelegs and upright posture. Hundreds of mantis species exist worldwide, and green coloration is very common, especially among species that reside in leafy habitats. Mantises like the European mantis and narrow-winged mantis blend in perfectly against the green backdrop of grasses, stems, and leaves. Their cryptic appearance allows them to patiently stalk prey undetected.
Different families of mantises have evolved varied mechanisms for generating green coloration in their exoskeletons. Some possess yellow pigments along with blue reflectors that together produce green through an optical effect. Others have nanostructures that selectively reflect green wavelengths. And some actively consume plant juices that impart green pigmentation. In a few species, young mantises start off gray or brown but develop green hues in adulthood.
Frogs
Many frog species also utilize green coloration as camouflage. The green tree frog is perhaps the most iconic example, with its bright green skin mottled with yellow, white, or black splotches. But other vividly green frogs include White’s tree frog, the European
