202 A NATURALIST IN HIMALAYA 



tips of its wings so as to give them the appearance of 

 a pair of leaves moved gently by the wind. 



It is instructive to contrast the Dophla in its 

 resemblance to the green leaf with such a form as the 

 Melanitis which resembles the leaves after they are 

 fallen and dry. The Dophla is coloured a rich green 

 to blend with the fresh foliage, the Melanitis is a dull 

 brown in harmony with the scattered leaves ; the 

 Dophla alights where it is lost upon the branches, 

 the Melanitis seeks concealment on the leaf-strewn 

 ground ; the Dophla rests with wide-open wings as it 

 is its upper surface that is protectively displayed, the 

 Melanitis alights with wings tightly closed for beneath 

 is its protective scheme ; the wings of the Dophla are 

 even and entire and so are the green healthy leaves, 

 the wings of the Melanitis are ragged and torn and 

 such is the scattered foliage in all stages of decay ; all 

 the Dophla are much alike and such is the harmony in 

 the mature leaves, in the Melanitis all differ and so do 

 the littered fragments that lie everywhere beneath the 

 trees ; the Dophla when it settles displays a pair of 

 wide-open wings and so also is the growing foliage 

 placed in pairs upon the stem, the Melanitis brings its 

 wings tightly together so as to appear to have only one 

 and thus blends with the multitude of single leaves that 

 lie scattered broadcast on the ground. 



Such is the contrast between the Dophla and the 

 Melanitis in their hard struggle for life. Each is 

 secure in its own habitat ; each is perfectly adapted to 

 the special nature of its own haunts. We can see all 

 this in the dead insect, in its structure, its colour, its 

 size and shape, but we must see each in its accustomed 

 haunts, we must watch each select its own special 



