COLORATION AFFECTED BY THE ENVIRONMENT. 4 ( > 



which he had bred from caterpillars found upon nettles : these 

 showed, according to Mr. Newman,* " a wonderful similarity to 

 Urtictf" though the colour was " nearer to that of Pob/chloros" 

 Plenty of other instances of a similar kind have been re- 

 corded, and by entomologists of experience ; I do not under- 

 stand why Professor Semper should throw a doubt upon the 

 validity of their statements, especially as he sees no intrinsic 

 improbability in the influence of food upon coloration. 



Professor Eirner f has quoted the researches of Koch in 

 this department of entomology. Koch was able in the case of 

 Cfielonia hebe (one of the Tiger moths) to alter the colour of 

 the underwings from a fiery to a dull red, and bring out more 

 strongly either the black markings or the white ground 

 by feeding the caterpillars upon different plants. Similar 

 experiments were made upon the common Tiger moth ((7/, 

 raj/tf), and Nemeophila plantaginis, also a British insect. 



Mr. Goss found that the larva of one of our fritillaries (Mt>lit<<' 

 <irt:"mis), when fed upon honeysuckle, which is not the usual 

 food plant of the caterpillar, became very dark-coloured iniagos.J 

 One of the " Thorn moths '' (Ennomos angularia] shows 

 variations in colour according as to whether the larva has been 

 fed upon oak, hawthorn, lime, or lilac. 



In the Zoologist, on p. 7903, Mr. Gregsou has tabulated the 

 results of a careful series of experiments dealing with the effects 

 produced by different food plants upon a number of different 

 species of moths. 



Pyrjt.vra luccpTiula was finer and darker when fed upon sycamore. 

 Xylophasia j>nhjodon was dark, sometimes black, when fed upon heather. 

 Ifadexa adusta was darker when fed upon heather. 

 Acronycta menyantlddis fed on sallow produces car. Solids. 



* Entomologist, vol. vi., p. 88. 



t " Organic Evolution," Eng. Trans, by J. T. Cunningham. 



t Entomnloc/ist, vol. vii., p. 203. Ibid, vol. ix., p. 263. 



