COLOR AND PATTERN IX ANIMALS 419 



would not let me approach, and kept running; away round and round 

 their pole, so I threw the insect at them. Their fright was ludicrous 

 to see; with loud cries they jumped aside and clambered up the pole as 

 fast as they could go, into their box, where they sat peering over the 

 edge watching the uncanny object below." (Marshall.) 



Marshall also writes concerning the markings on the wings 

 of the mantis, Pseudocreobotra wahlbergi : 



" They are, I think, almost certainly of a terrifying character. When 

 the insect is irritated, the wings are raised over its back in such a 

 manner that the tegmina stand side by side, and the markings on them 

 present a very striking resemblance to the great yellow eyes of a bird 

 of prey or some feline animal, which might well deter an insectivorous 

 enemy. It is noticeable that the insect is always careful to keep the 

 wings directed toward the point of attack, and this is often done with- 

 out altering the position of the body." 



Still another use is believed by some entomologists to be 

 afforded by such markings as ocelli and other specially con- 

 spicuous spots and flecks on the wings of butterflies and moths, 

 and by such apparently useless parts as the "tails" of the hind 

 wings of the swallowtail, and Lyccenid butterflies, and others. 

 Marshall occupied himself for a long time with collecting butter- 

 flies which had evidently been snapped at by birds (in some 

 cases the actual attack being observed) and suffered the loss of 

 a part of a wing. Examining these specimens when brought 

 together, Poulton and Marshall noted that the "great majority 

 [of these injuries to the wings] are inflicted at the anal angle 

 and adjacent hind margin of the hind wing, a considerable 

 number at or near the apical angle of the fore wing, and com- 

 paratively few between the points." In this fact, coupled with 

 the fact that the apical and hind angles of the fore and hind 

 wings respectively are precisely those regions of the wings most 

 usually specially marked and prolonged as angular processes or 

 tails, Poulton sees a special significance in the patterns of these 

 wing parts. He thinks they are "directive marks which tend 

 to divert the attention of an enemy from more vital parts." 

 It is obvious that a butterfly can very well afford to lose the 

 tip or tail of a wing if that loss will save losing head or abdomen. 

 Poulton sees a "remarkable resemblance of the marks and 



