88 SPOLIA ZEYLANICA. 



some horticultural friend in Europe, he would almost certainly plant 

 them carefully and expect to raise some interesting tropical plant 

 from them. When first hatched the young insects are of a bright 

 reddish colour, harmonizing with the young leaves of many of our 

 shrubs and plants, and it is upon such tender leaves that they feed 

 during this early stage. As they grow older they prefer the more 

 mature leaves, and at the same time the red tints are gradually 

 changed to green. The upper surface of most leaves is darker and 

 more glossy than the underside. In the half -grown insect we find 

 a reverse arrangement of tlie tints. The back of the insect is of a 

 dull pale green tint, while the underside is of a deeper colour and 

 more shming surface. This at first sight would appear to be 

 faulty adaptation ; but such is far from being the case, for the 

 habitual attitude of the insect in this stage is head downwards, 

 with the hinder leaf-like part of the body re-curved over its back, in 

 whicli position the under surface of the body is uppermost. So 

 perfectly leaf-like are the full-grown insects that they may be said 

 to partially defeat the purpose of their disguise, for they are some- 

 times mistaken by their fellows for actual leaves, and may have 

 parts of their wings nibbled off before they realize what is happen- 

 ing. Perhaps, though, this accident may really enhance their 

 disguise, for the ragged insect looks like a leaf that has been 

 partially devoured by a caterpillar. 



{Fig. 2.) The allied "Stick Insects" (P/iasmtf^ce) resemble the 

 stalks of grasses or the thin twigs of. bamboos and shrubs. One 

 species frequents the common yellow-stemmed bamboo. It has a 

 smooth cylindrical yellowish body, jointed at intervals like the 

 bamboo upon which it lives. Another is covered with thorn-like 

 processes and simulates a piece of bramble. Their eggs, like those 

 of the leaf insects, resemble seeds of various kinds. They are either 

 attached to the leaves of plants or shed upon the ground. 



Another smaU insect (belonging to the family Membracidce) 

 apparently* relies upon its similarity to the thorns of the plant 

 upon which it is most frequently found. Both the young and 

 the mature insects resemble thorns, but in a different manner. 

 The young insect is green, and has a single erect-pointed promi- 

 nence on the back. It frequents tlie young shoots where the 

 natural thorns are soft and green. The adult insect has a pair of 

 backwardly directed curved black horns, and may often be found 

 on the older shoots where the thorns are dark coloured. To obtain 

 the highest degree of imitation the young insects should rest with 

 their heads towards the base of the stem, while the adult insects 

 should adopt the opposite position. And this is most frequently 

 found to be the case. By so doing the curve of the horns of the 

 insects takes up the direction of the thorns of the plant. This 

 thorn-hke Membracid is na,m.ed Leptocentrus substitutus, Wlk., and 

 the thorny plant upon which it lives is Capparis sepiaria, L. 



