The nightjar's soft plumage and variegated coloring help it 1…

The nightjar's soft plumage and variegated coloring help it 1 in with its surrounds, but it is the bird's own judgement in choosing the most sympathetic background that 2 it a camouflage champion. Each bird chooses where to nest 3 on its specific patterns and colors, says camouflage researcher Martin Stevens, of the Centre for Ecology and Conservation at the University of Exeter in Cornwall. "Each individual bird looks a little bit different," he says. "This is not a species-level choice. Individual birds consistently sit in places thatenhance their own unique markings, 4 within a habitat and at a fine scale with regards to specific background sites."