No. This beetle has not found itself too close to a brush full of brilliant white emulsion paint. It is that white or, more precisely, looks that white but, is in fact, black. This was one was photographed recently in Hong Kong by AJP.
Beetles of the genus Cyphochilus occur in south-east Asia. The species that occurs in Hong Kong has been identified as Cyphochilus apicalis. All are white and it is that whiteness that has attracted research by physicists. The whiteness is achieved not by pigment but by the optical properties of a layer of cuticle proteins only around 5 microns or μ (micrometres) thick—less than half the thickness of the finest human hair. The filaments in the layer are arranged in a manner such that they scatter incoming light of all wavelengths equally to produce white light.
Once the mechanism and structural characteristics of the protein filaments had been identified the race was on to mimic the process and produce an extremely thin material with such properties. In short, thin materials with these properties have now been made.
The advantage of appearing white has been attributed to camouflage of the beetles against a background of white fungi.
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