Likin’ it: This incredible insect looks exactly like lichen

[A clever photographer has captured a video of a Lichen-looking insect crawling across a strip of lichen. Photo: David Weller/Youtube]

Move over iguanas! There’s a new camouflage king in town.

It’s called the Lichen Katydid, and man, does it look like lichen. For those of us who aren’t botanists, lichen is a ubiquitous plant-like organism made from algae and fungus, reports Gizmodo. If you’ve ever been in a forest, you’ve seen it in one form or another.

The Lichen Katydid doesn’t do anything special, except look exactly like lichen. Just as there are numerous types of lichen, there are also hundreds of different Lichen Katydid species.

In the above video, wildlife photographer David Weiller has captured a particular Lichen Katydid in action, crawling across a strip of — that’s right — lichen.

It’s long limbs and antennae perfectly mimic the type of lichen that grows in its habitat, and its body is even striped with lichen coloured lines. Wispy spikes grow from its legs and body that have the appearance of — you guessed it — lichen.

See if you can tell where the bug ends and the plant begins.