Kaleidoscope of Creatures
Cath Ard and Greer Stothers
Wide Eyed Editions

This is a fascinating look at the reasons underlying the amazing hues, patterns and textures (feather, fur and scales) of members of the animal kingdom.

After a general introduction, the opening spreads are devoted in turn, to an animal family tree that gives information about the characteristics each group has in common, followed by a close-up look at different examples of body coverings – fur, scales – reptilian and fish – and feathers.

Thereafter come a series of spreads where animals – both well known and unusual species – are grouped by the colour of their outer covering (brief explanations are given) be that red,

orange or pink, yellow, green, blue, indigo or violet, black, white, black and white.
Red for instance may act as a warning as in the red velvet mite whose silky hairs indicate to predators ‘I taste horrible’, as does the body of a scarlet lily beetle. Whereas being green often helps a creature remain unseen be it a forest dweller or one that lives in the sea.

Also helping some animals to stay unseen are designs such as spots and stripes and these are the titles of two further spreads.
Most of us know male peacocks have those amazing tail feathers that open into a stunning fan shape in order to attract a mate, but did you know that to attract a mate, male green iguanas turn carrot-coloured?

Every spread is visually arresting thanks to Greer Stothers’ pleasingly arranged arrays of fabulous fauna each one of which is labelled, with most having accompanying salient facts.

For budding zoologists and school topic boxes, I suggest.