Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Sara Tabin is a science contributor writing about animals. Scientists aren’t sure, but one theory, dubbed the “motion dazzle ...

Stripes are common in our lives. It’s a pretty basic pattern, and easy to take for granted. As an applied mathematician who studies how patterns form in nature, though, I am wowed by the striped ...

Stripe patterns are commonly seen in nature—for instance, birds and fish move in coordinated flocks and schools, fingerprints ...

Some patterns arise simply or randomly, but others develop via complex, precise interactions of pattern-generating systems. Their beauty aside, the intricacies of these systems are inspiring the ...

How did the zebra get its stripes? The fashionable patterned coat protects the animal from horsefly bites by disorienting the flies during the landing process, research has shown. But how exactly do ...

The zebrafish, a small fresh water fish, owes its name to a striking pattern of blue stripes alternating with golden stripes. Three major pigment cell types, black cells, reflective silvery cells, and ...

When tigers stalk their prey, usually in the murky light of dusk or dawn, they are nearly invisible. Whether they live in grasslands, forests or jungles, wild tigers have deep orange coats with dark ...

Patterns on animal skin, such as zebra stripes and poison frog color patches, serve various biological functions, including temperature regulation, camouflage and warning signals. The colors making up ...