IN DEFENSIVE COLORATION 353 



Nymphalid Sub- Family the Elymniinae, closely related 

 and, by many systematists, united to the Satyrinae. With 

 a very few possible exceptions the whole of the 

 Elymniinae are mimetic. Both sexes of the few Ethio- 

 pian forms resemble Acraeinae — closely upon the upper 

 surface, more roughly but still distinctly on the under. 

 The Oriental and Austro-Malayan forms mimic Euploeini, 

 Danaini, Pierinae, and Morphinae (or Amathusiinae, as 

 the Old World representatives of the group are some- 

 times called). Of all these the Euploeini, forming the 

 dominant distasteful group of the Regions, are by far 

 the most important as the models of this Sub-Family. 

 The females are in many of the species far more 

 striking mimics than the males, and often mimic 

 different models. The Mimetic Resemblance on the 

 under surface is in some species very perfect, in others 

 imperfect, while in a considerable proportion it is replaced 

 by a Procryptic Resemblance to dead leaves which, 

 although wanting the perfection and detail of Protogonius, 

 is doubtless very efficient in promoting concealment. A 

 small number of species which do not fall into the above 

 categories apparently possess Warning Colours peculiar 

 to themselves, or patterns which, without further evidence, 

 we cannot as yet interpret. 



Mr. Shelford, who has had an intimate experience of 

 the male of the Bornean species, Elymnias (Melynias) his, 

 describes it as closely resembling, upon the wing, the 

 abundant Danaines of the genera Caduga, Paralitica, &c, 

 but disappearing the moment it comes to rest on the 

 ground among dead leaves, when the procryptic under 

 surface is alone visible. 1 From this he infers, as in 

 Protogonius, that the butterfly is palatable to birds 

 which would reject the Danaine model as unpalatable, 

 but that these enemies do not distinguish the one 

 from the other when upon the wing : in other words, 

 he considers the resemblance to be Pseudaposematic, or 

 an example of Batesian Mimicry. This conclusion may 

 be sound, both for Protogonius, Elymniinae, and other 

 forms with the same methods of colouring. It must in any 

 1 Proc. Zool. Soc, Lond., 1902, vol. ii, p. 259. 



POULTON A 3, 



