The internet loves to make jokes about camouflage. We pretend that a person is a floating head if they’re wearing a camo outfit or that they’ll never be able to find their truck in a parking lot if it’s wrapped in camo. But how much do you actually know about the history of camouflage?
According to Army Cadets, variations of camouflage have been around for thousands of years. By humans, it has mostly been used to conceal soldiers, weapons, and equipment, but plenty of animals camouflage themselves into their environments as well. Camo can provide plenty of advantages for movement and survival when done well.
When you think of animals camouflaging themselves, you likely imagine chameleons or octopuses that can change colors. But even animals like zebras and polar bears have strategic fur colors and patterns that can help them blend in. Another great example is the walkingstick insect, which you could easily mistake for an actual stick.
As far as how humans have utilized camouflage, it was apparently a tactic that even Julius Caesar deployed by sending blue and green spy ships that could blend into the shoreline. It wasn’t until relatively recent history, however, that camouflage became the standard attire in military combat.
#8 Was Told I Should Post This Here... Picked Up This Little Guy And This Is Where He Chose To Lay
Back when wars were fought with hand-to-hand combat, camouflage was unnecessary. But as weapons became more advanced and effective from a far distance, being able to camouflage soldiers could give a country a huge advantage. By the eighteenth century, British rifle units began to wear dark green uniforms. And by the time the First World War came around, camouflage was used not only on humans, but also on vehicles and artillery.
According to the USAMM Armed Forces Superstore, there are a variety of different types of camo that all serve different purposes. There’s desert camo, which is commonly used in Middle Eastern and North African settings. It was utilized in the Gulf War and by the Marines in Desert MARPAT. Then, there’s woodland camo, which is one of the most popular types of camo used by the US military. This is the iconic pattern made to mimic trees, leaves, and underbrush.
Another type of camouflage that you may have never seen in the wild is urban camo. This uses grayscale, black, and white patterns to mimic concrete, asphalt, and shadow-heavy landscapes. It’s one of the least used types of camo by the US Army. Then, there’s also ocean camo, which is full of blue hues to help blend into water, waves, and open seas. This is primarily used by the US Navy.
Camouflage isn’t only used for practical reasons, though. According to The Guardian, it has been growing in popularity in the fashion world in recent years too. But this might actually be a sign of “paranoid times.” Historically, camo clothing has been on the rise in the US during the Vietnam War and during the late 1990s and early 2000s. “[The current revival suggests] we’re really in an insecure moment where we don’t really know what will happen,” Sarah Scaturro, chief conservator at the Cleveland Museum of Art, told The Guardian.
