The survival value of countershading with wild birds as predators

Experiments were carried out on garden lawns in England in which four types of green pastry prey were exposed to predation by wild birds. The prey were dark green, light green, countershaded (dark green above, light green below) and reverse shaded (i.e. identical to countershaded but laid out upside-down). Birds took significantly fewer countershaded prey than any of the other types thereby demonstrating the survival value of countershading.