S8 BUTTERFLIES 



Colonel C. T. Bingham made in 1878, but not published 

 until long afterward. The observation was this: 



" The Melanitis was there among dead leaves, its wings 

 folded and looking for all the world a dead, dry leaf itself. 

 With regard to Melanitis, I have not seen it recorded any- 

 where that the species of this genus w^hen disturbed fly 

 a little way, drop suddenly into the undergrowth with 

 closed wings, and invariably lie a little askew and slanting, 

 which still more increases their likeness to a dead leaf cas- 

 ually fallen to the ground." 



Long before this was printed, however, a similar habit 

 had been observed by Scudder in the case of our White 

 Mountain butterfly {Oenis semidea). But this species is 

 so exceptional in its habitat that the habit seems to have 

 been considered a special adaptation to the wind-swept 

 mountain top. The possibility of its being at all general 

 among the butterflies in lowlands seems to have been over- 

 looked. 



The observations recorded by Longstaff relate chiefly to 

 various members of the Satyrid group. For example, a 

 common Grayling, Satyrus semele, was watched many 

 times as it settled on the ground. As a rule three motions 

 are gone through in regular sequence: the wings are 

 brought together over the back; the fore wings are drawn 

 between the hind wings; the whole is thrown over to right 

 or left to the extent of thirty, forty, or even fifty degrees. 



This habit, of course, is of advantage to the insect. It 

 seems possible that the advantage might be explained in 

 either of two ways: first, the leaning over on the ground 

 among grasses and fallen leaves might help to render 

 the disguising coloration of the insect more effective, the 

 large ocelli serving to draw the eye away from the outline 



