338 ) 



XII. Further noles on recapitulatory attitudes in Lepi- 

 doptera. By T. A. Chapman, M.D. 



[Read October 3rd, 1917.] 



I HAVE made a few more observations on the methods 

 followed by some Lepidoptera in passing from the attitude 

 of drying their wings after their expa]ision to their ordinary 

 attitude of rest. The subject is interesting from any point 

 of view, and especially as it points to each species that has 

 a special resting attitude adopting during this period certain 

 positions that are actually, or in some degree 'recall, the 

 ordinary resting attitude that is not theirs but that of the 

 group to which they belong, or that is most frequent in 

 I^epidoptera. 



I have only had opportunity to observe three more 

 species of butterflies. They agree with those reported on 

 last year, in making certain opening and closing wing 

 movements, not after the wings are dry, but during the 

 process of drying ; so far as uiy few observations go nothing 

 of this sort occurs in the Heterocera. 



In P. rapae this was seen to suggest an effort, which the 

 limpness of the undried wings prevented being successful, 

 to spread the wings flatly, as in the resting attitude of so 

 many Lepidoptera. The other species noticed had similar 

 alternations of opening and closing the wings, but through 

 a much smaller angle that would not suggest an effort to 

 extend them flatly, but for the fact that they were obvi- 

 ously of the same character as in P. rapae. Though this 

 curious habit may have some other meaning, none has 

 occurred to me but that mentioned in my previous paper. 



AVitli regard to the Heterocera observed, the Geometers 

 follow broadly the same procedure as did those reported in 

 the ]n'evious paper, and suggest that the habit they exhibit 

 will obtain in all similar Geometers, that is, similar in having 

 resting positions other than the typical deltoid one. My 

 examples come from each of the three largest sub-families 

 of our British Geometers, so that the habit is in no way 

 of classificatory value. This conclusion is confirmed by 

 finding that precisely the same reminiscence of the typical 

 resting position occurs in the quite unrelated F.falcataria. 



TRANS. ENT. SOC. LOND. 1917. — PARTS II, III, IV. (MAY '18) 



