The Bionomics of SoiifJi African Tnsrcfs. 3Co 



Looking through my diaries T find more scattered notes 

 of my having witnessed birds swoop for and catcli butter- 

 flies and moths, but these were solitary incidents, and 

 ordy slight mention is made of them in the diaries with 

 one exception, which is given below — 



" Gamp Wahosalhan, December 8. . . . Going 

 through some fairly open jungle close to the main road 

 I put up a Mchnitis ziteriius, which fluttered acros? the 

 road and was swooped at by a king-crow {Dicmrus) 

 but missed ; the butterfly dodged, got to the other side 

 of the road and dropped to the ground among the 

 herbage and fallen leaves, as is the habit of Melanitis. 

 The king-crow hovered for a minute not three feet from 

 the ground over the exact spot where I had noticed the 

 butterfly drop, failed to see it, flew off, but returned and 

 again hovered over the spot, but was again unsuccessful, 

 and flew up to a tree. I went forward very cautiously, 

 and having carefully noted the spot where the butterfly 

 had dropped, was enabled to make it out, but not till 

 after fully ten minutes of patient and very cautious look- 

 ing. The Mclnnitis was there among dead leaves, its 

 wings folded and looking for all the world a dead dry leaf 

 itself. With regard to AfeJanitis, I have not seen it 

 recorded anywhere that the species of this genus when 

 disturbed fly a little way, drop suddenly into the under- 

 growth with closed wings and invariably lie a little askew 

 and slanting, which still more increases their likeness to a 

 dead leaf casually fallen to the ground. 



" Only once again did I see the systematic hawking of 

 butterflies by birds. This second occurrence was also by 

 bee-eaters; this time it was the large Mcrops pMJiiJpinns. 

 I had been up in the Salween forests beyond the great 

 rapids, and had managed to get a bad bout of fever which 

 necessitated my returning to Moulmein, my head-quarters. 

 It was a hot steamy day in October, and I was lying with 

 the hot fever fit on me in the boat on the Salween below 

 Shwegon, when I noticed clouds of butterflies, chiefly 

 Cato2)siHa, migrating, crossing the Salween from east to 

 west in a continuous stream. These were being persist- 

 ently hawked by the Mcrops, mixed with which were 

 some king-crows." 



With regard to Microhicra.v cmruksccns catching butter- 

 flies, I find the following note : — 



"March 20, 1S81. . . . Passing through a taungyah on 

 my way back to camp I noticed a number of butterflies, 



