Abstract

Most of the colors seen in Nature result from the selective absorption and scattering of light by pigments. However there are some that result from the interference or diffraction of light waves by physical structures that have dimensions comparable with the wavelength of light. This presentation given an introduction to a wide variety of such effects including the iridescence in bird feathers, butterfly wings, and beetle shells; the mother-of-pearl colors in oyster and clam shells; the colors of sun-lit spider webs; and the metallic-appearing spots on the chrysalis of a monarch butterfly. Many beautiful examples of iridescence will be shown — with specimen and with photograph. In some cases, explanations of the color-producing mechanisms are known, but in the majority of cases, questions will be posed to which the answers are not known.

© 1990 Optical Society of America