29 



did not consider the communication decisive upon that point ; the Dorylus it appeared 

 had been discovered in the same nest, or iu company with workers of Typhlopone, but 

 the female bad not been discovered, and Dorylus might yet prove to be a parasite. 

 Mr. Shuckard liad suggested the probability of Labidus, the New World representa- 

 tive of Doiylus, being the male of Typhlopone ; and as the latter genus, or one very 

 closely resembling it. had been received from Brazil from Mr. Bates, the communica- 

 tion, should the connexion therein stated prove eventually to be correct, certainly con- 

 firmed Mr. Shuckard's views. 



Mr. Stainton read the following paper: — 



On the persistence of Species, 



" Some strangely heretical notions were broached at the last Meeting, — at least 

 they were such notions as must appear heretical to all who have closely studied 

 species. 



"It was suggested that those individuals of a genus which all who have most care- 

 fully investigated the subject agree in considering species, were not in reality species, 

 but merely varieties, or rather races caused by some modification of habit. The 

 statement that different species will, in the larva state, feed on different i)lants, was 

 used in an inverted manner to imply that eggs of one species laid on four or five dif- 

 ferent plants will produce apparently as many different species, 



" I do not wish in the slightest degree to overstate the new theory, but I cannot 

 see that it differs in degree from what I have just mentioned. Species somewhat 

 similar feeding on closely allied plants were suggested as probable variations caused 

 by the difference of food; but if a slight difference of food causes a slight apparent 

 difl'erence of species, a greater difference of food would of course produce a greater 

 apparent difference of sjiecies, and thus each genus might be assumed to consist of 

 only a single species, varying according to its food and other circumstances. 



" Hence species aie not ; they tvere merely phantoms of the brain of the naturalist. 



"The difference between the two specimens of Cemiostoma I have exhibited is 

 not.a specific difference; Scilella, driven by stress of weather far from its usual food, 

 laid eggs on Lotus, and thus produced an apparently new species. It is of course an 

 interesting problem whether, if this insect bred fro:n the Lotus were to deposit eo-gs 

 on an apple-leaf the result would not be some other aberrant creature, which the 

 first captor would hold to be a new species till an elaborate investigation into its pedi- 

 gree should show that it was descended from Scilella, out of Lotus, by Scitella, 

 out of apple. 



" Such theories would never have been started but for the smallness of the 

 objects under discussion. 



" I have also brought for exhibition two hitherto reputed distinct species of 

 butterflies, of the genus Vanessa ; but as they are very similar in appearance, and feed 

 on plants of the same natural order, Urticaceae, perhaps the Meeting will now be dis- 

 posed to consider Polychloros and Urticte as one species: it will of course be 

 remarked that the flight of these two insects is very different, that of Polychloros 

 being far the more powerful ; but then it must be borue in mind that elm trees grow 

 higher than nettles, and consequently a butterfly bred from an elm tree might be 

 expected to be endowed, on that very account, with stronger organs of flight. 



" 1 could multiply similar instances ad nauseam ; but really I feci that 1 am uu- 



