In the dense rainforests of northern Australia and South-East Asia, a master of disguise flutters through the shadows. The fruit-sucking moth (Eudocima aurantia) has long been known to resemble a leaf, but scientists have now discovered that its deception goes far deeper than meets the eye.

Its wings, though flat, create an astonishing optical illusion: they mimic the three-dimensional curves and highlights of a crumpled leaf, tricking predators into seeing something that isn’t there.

“It’s literally pretending to be 3D by just having these mirror-like structures in the special places on its wings,” Dr. Jennifer Kelley, a biologist at the University of Western Australia and lead author of the study, told New Scientist.

The Science of Deception

The fruit-sucking moth’s wings are a marvel of evolutionary engineering. Unlike many other insects that rely on pigments for coloration, this moth uses structural coloration — a phenomenon where microscopic structures interact with light to produce color. In this case, the moth’s wing scales are covered in nanostructures that act like tiny mirrors. These mirrors reflect light in such a way that they create the illusion of highlights and shadows, mimicking the way light plays across the curved surface of a leaf.

“These nanostructures create a shiny wing surface that mimics the highlights found on a smooth, curved leaf surface,” explains Dr. Annie Jessop, a co-author of the study from Murdoch University. “The moth is exploiting thin-film reflectors to produce directional reflections — producing the illusion of a 3D leaf shape.”

What makes this discovery particularly striking is that the nanostructures are strategically placed only on the parts of the wing that would appear curved if it were a real leaf.

“It is intriguing that the nanostructures which produce shininess only occur on the parts of the wing that would be curved if the wing was a leaf,” says Dr. Kelley. “This suggests that moths are exploiting the way predators perceive 3D shapes to improve their camouflage.”

A Trick of the Light

The fruit-sucking moth’s illusion is so convincing that even humans are fooled. “If I gave you a specimen now, you wouldn’t believe it was flat,” says Kelley. “When we showed it to people, they were very confused by it. It really does not look flat.”

This level of deception is crucial for the moth’s survival. Birds, its primary predators, rely heavily on visual cues to identify prey. By mimicking a leaf, the moth avoids detection, blending seamlessly into its environment. “This mimicry likely serves as a camouflage strategy, fooling predators into misidentifying the moth as an inedible object,” says Kelley.

The discovery builds on earlier research by the same team. Previous work revealed that other moths in the same group use shape-shifting patterns on their wings for camouflage. But the fruit-sucking moth’s flat-winged illusion is unique. “What is remarkable about this moth is that it is creating the appearance of a three-dimensional object despite being almost completely flat,” Kelley adds. “This is the novel find to our study.”

The marvel of camouflage

The fruit-sucking moth’s camouflage is just one example of the extraordinary ways animals have evolved to survive. From fish that resemble leaves to butterfly pupae that look like bird droppings, nature is full of creatures that masquerade as uninteresting or inedible objects. But the moth’s use of structural coloration to create a 3D illusion pushes the boundaries of what scientists thought possible in animal camouflage.

Another thing worth mentioning is the immense value that museum collections have in scientific discovery. The team made their discovery while studying specimens at the London Natural History Museum, which houses one of the world’s largest collections of these moths.

“Even though the moth has been sitting in the museum for hundreds of years, literally nobody noticed,” says Kelley.

The findings appeared in the journal Current Biology.