Skip to main content

Link to Smithsonian homepage

Smithsonian Music

Main menu

  • Calendar
  • Listen
  • Learn
    • Ask Smithsonian
    • Collections Spotlights
    • Music Stories
  • Watch
  • Blog

Blue Jays in Winter, study for book Concealing Coloration in the Animal Kingdom

Object Details

Luce Center Label
In 1909, Abbott Handerson Thayer and his son, Gerald, published a controversial book titled Concealing Coloration in the Animal Kingdom, offering their theory of animal camouflage. Thayer believed that the coloration of animals, no matter how eye-catching, was meant to disguise them in nature through what he called "countershading." Even bright pink flamingoes would vanish against a similar colored sky at sunset or sunrise. No matter that at times their brilliant feathers were highly visible, their coloration would protect them from predators at crucial moments so that "the spectator seems to see right through the space occupied by an opaque animal."
Not all readers were convinced. The most passionate criticism came from Teddy Roosevelt, who was in Africa when the book came out. He protested upon his return that Thayer's theory was ludicrous, arguing that on his trip he had spotted some of the animals Thayer mentioned from miles away. Roosevelt's challenge sparked a heated debate between the two men. Roosevelt wrote a 112-page article refuting Thayer's ideas; Thayer repeatedly invited Roosevelt to his home in New Hampshire, hoping to demonstrate his theories, but Roosevelt always refused (Nemerov, "Vanishing Americans: Abbott Thayer, Theodore Roosevelt, and the Attraction of Camouflage," American Art, Summer 1997).
Luce Object Quote
"Our book presents, not theories, but revelations." Abbott Thayer, 1909
Data Source
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Artist
Abbott Handerson Thayer, born Boston, MA 1849-died Dublin, NH 1921
Date
ca. 1905-1909
Credit Line
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the heirs of Abbott Handerson Thayer
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
22 1/8 x 18 1/8 in. (56.1 x 45.9 cm.)
Type
Painting

Featured In

  • The Art and Science of Birds
  • Winter Wonderland
This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Open Access page.
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
View manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Link to Smithsonian homepage

  • About
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy
  • YouTube
  • Twitter
Back to Top