Brazilian Danaidae. According to Fruhstorfer all Euploeas emit a strong 



smell, sometimes resembling the scent of flowers but frequently very repulsive, 



the latter being the case especially in E. Midamus L. Longstaff, however, 



took two c? and four 9 of this species at Hongkong, of which only one 9 had 



such a powerful acetylene-like odour as to be clearly perceptible when in the 



net. Except in a couple of instances where evidently these butterflies had 



recently been feeding on excrements and clearly carried the smell with them, 



I have never been able to notice that they emitted any particular smell, not 



even the species just referred to, although I have certainly handled hundreds 



of it ; I can scarcely believe, therefore, that they should be protected against 



the attacks of birds by an unpleasant smell or taste. De Niceville, it is true, 



makes this assertion, but this entomologist always labours strongly under the 



suggestion of mimicry and observations in relation to their obsessions by such 



persons are not much to be trusted. When treating of the Hesperidae, we have 



already seen an instance of this in the case of the larva of Hidari Trava 



Moore. But such insects, having only a very attenuated body together with 



large inconvenient wings, can hardly be a favourite food with insectivorous birds. 



Moreover, on two occasions I have seen Euploea Rafflesi Moore being caught 



and eaten by a bird (Edolius). The tenacity of life in these butterflies is very 



striking, since it is next to impossible to kill them, like other Rhopalocera, 



by compressing the thorax; they certainly remain motionless a short time but 



soon recover completely. On the other hand a drop of chloroform applied 



to the side of the thorax kills thems at once. On my arrival at Batavia on 



the morning of January iS''' 1863, after a sea voyage of three months, I went 



to the Hotel des Tndes where a room, communicating with the garden, was 



placed at my disposal. Here I observed my first Malayan butterflj' flying 



round a shrub and, naturally, I could not resist the temptation of catching it 



with the aid of my hat; it was a Euploea Midamus L. 9. I squeezed the 



thorax of the insect until it was motionless and, as I thought, dead and fixed 



it with an ordinary pin, for want of better, to a piece of board which I found 



on the spot, provisionally placing the board on the top of a wardrobe. This 



happened about 1 1 o'clock in the morning, shortly after which I left my room 



to take luncheon and upon returning afterwards I noticed the board still in the 



same place but both butterfly and pin had disappeared. I concluded that a 



native servant had thrown away the insect. The next morning, however, about 



10 o'clock I observed a similar butcerfly flying round the same shrub; I caught 



it and it proved to be the identical one, the pin still through its bod}-. With 



pin and all the creature had managed to detach itself from the board, had 



passed the night in this state and then flew about as if nothing had happened ! 



