Cabinet for Magritte

The painting's theme is one of my favorite topics: trickery in nature. It is named for the painter Rene Magritte, because he loved illusions. The artwork depicts several illusions: The owl butterfly (Caligo memnon) has evolved to look like the owl (Megascops cooperi), who itself is well camouflaged with feathers that look like tree bark. The gold beetle (Chrysina aurigans) looks just like polished gold. The orchid (Oncidium ascendens) provides no nectar, but resembles flowers that do. It gets pollinated for free, so to speak! Finally, the ecological message is that our view of a living forest ecosystem as "lumber" is also an illusion.