MIMIR 



M1NAS GERAES 



other butterflies of that region 

 with the exception of the unrelated 

 mimicking species. As A. R. Wal- 

 lace has put it : " It is, therefore, 

 clear that if any other butterflies in 

 the same region, which are eatable 

 and suffer great persecution from 

 insectivorous animals, should come 

 to resemble any of these uneatable 

 species so closely as to be mistaken 

 for them by their enemies, they 

 will obtain thereby immunity from 

 persecution. This is the obvious 

 and sufficient reason why the imi- 

 tation is useful, and therefore why 

 it occurs in nature." Natural selec- 

 tion, by weeding out the least like, 

 is always tending to the perfection 

 of the resemblance. The mimicked 

 species is always more numerous 

 in individuals than its imitators. 

 Wallace added further examples 

 from his experiences in Malaya, 

 and Trimen from his among the 

 butterflies of S. Africa. 



The same principle prevails in 

 other orders of insect life. Inedible 

 beetles that are warningly coloured 

 are mimicked by other beetles that 

 are perfectly palatable, and moths 

 imitate protected wasps, saw- 

 flies, and unpalatable beetles so 

 closely that entomologists trained 

 to look for such counterfeit 

 resemblances are frequently de- 

 ceived. A few desert plants escape 

 destruction by herbivorous animals 

 by resembling stones. 



Another class of mimicry is quite 

 commonly displayed by moths 

 whose wing-markings are such that 

 when the moth settles upon tree- 

 trunk or rock its colour-scheme 

 melts, as it were, into the immedi- 

 ate surroundings, and the insect 

 becomes invisible ; in other cases 

 they resemble dead or living leaves 

 or twigs. See Bird; Darwinism; 

 Insect ; Protective Colouring ; con- 

 sult also Darwinism, A. R. Wallace, 

 1889; Colours hi Animals, E. A. 

 Poulton, 2nd. ed. 1890 ; A Natur- 

 alist on Lake Victoria, G. D H. 

 Carpenter, 1920. 



Mimir. In Norse mythology, 

 guardian of the fountain of wisdom 

 in the lower world. Odin pur- 

 chased a draught from the fountain 

 with one of his eyes, and thus was 

 enabled to spread wisdom among 

 men. Mimir was a hostage given 

 by the Aesir to the Vanir, who 

 beheaded him ; but Odin uttered 

 spells over the head that it might 

 still advise him. 



Mimnermus (fl. c. 620 B.C.). 

 Greek lyric poet. A native of 

 Smyrna, he was the first to use 

 elegiac verse regularly for the 

 themes of love and lament. Frag- 

 ments only of his work survive. 



Mimosa. Large genus of herbs, 

 shrubs, and trees of the natural 

 order Leguminosae, chiefly natives 



of America. The leaves are twice 

 divided into small leaflets, and are 

 often sensitive, folding up at a 

 touch, or under atmospheric 

 changes. The small yellow flowers 

 are closely packed in round heads 



Mimosa. Spray of flowers and foliage 

 of the American shrub 



or cylindrical spikes. The mimosas 

 are frequently confused with the 

 Australian wattles (Acacia), but 

 no species of mimosa is a native 

 of Australia. 



Mimulus. Genus of annual and 

 perennial herbs of the natural order 

 Scrophulariaceae. The musk (q.v.) 



Mimulus. Leaves and flowers of 

 mnsk, Mimulus moschatus 



is the best-known species. They 

 are natives of America, Asia, E. 

 Africa, and Australia, and were 

 introduced into Britain in 1826. 

 See Monkey-flower. 



Min. Egyptian deity. Perhaps 

 introduced from Punt, he was the 

 god of fields and the desert routes, 

 especially worshipped at Coptos 

 arid at Akhmim, whose Greek name 

 Panopolis is due to his identifica- 

 tion with Pan. Petrie's Coptos 

 excavations, 1894, revealed three 

 limestone colossi of the god, the 

 oldest Egyptian statuary. In the 

 XlXth dynasty Min was absorbed by 

 Ammon, and portrayed as a 

 tightly swathed man with the 

 double plume, his right arm hold- 

 ing a flail. See Egypt. 



Min. Name of two rivers in 

 China. One is a tributary on the 

 left bank of the Yang-tse, which it 



joins near Suifu. It rises hi the N. 

 of Szechuan prov. at an elevation 

 of 13,000 ft., and is navigable for 

 200 m. The other river is in Fukien 

 prov. Including the longest of its 

 three headstreams, it is 350 m. 

 in length. Foochow is situated on 

 it. Owing to the bar at the mouth, 

 large ships can only enter the river 

 at high tide. See China ; Foochow. 



Mina. Ancient Greek weight 

 and money of account, varying in 

 Asia Minor and different parts of 

 Greece. Though not coined, the 

 money of account equalled one- 

 sixtieth of a talent and was worth 

 between 3 and 4. 



Mina OR MYNAH (Gracula religi- 

 osa). Passerine bird of Southern 

 India. About the size of the 

 English blackbird, glossy black in 

 colour, with purple, violet, and 

 green iridescence, it has a white 

 patch on the quill 

 feathers of the wings, 

 a curved orange bill, 

 yellow legs, and behind 

 the eye a naked, fleshy 

 yellow excrescence 

 which joins the top of 

 the head. There is also 

 a bare patch below the 

 eye. They are described 

 as fruit-eaters, but are 

 very familiar from 

 their habit of visiting 

 verandahs for the pur- 

 pose of feeding upon 

 the insects that shelter 

 there. They are easily 

 tamed, and in addition 

 to their natural whist- 

 ling capabilities can 

 be ^taught to pro- 

 nounce words quite 

 distinctly. 



Minaret. Term 

 used for a slender Minaret or 

 tower of moderate -. to . wer f 

 height, with one or Ma jj d e an 

 more balconies, from 

 which Mahomedan priests sum- 

 mon the people to prayer at certain 

 stated hours. See Mahomedan 

 Architecture. 



Minas. Town of Uruguay, 

 capital of the dept. of Minas. It 

 is 70 m. direct and about 80 m. by 

 rly. N.N.E. of Montevideo. In the 

 vicinity are marble and granite 

 quarries. Founded in 1784, it has 

 a pop. of 9,000. Minas dept., in 

 the S.E. of the republic, has an 

 area of 4,819 sq. m. Stock-raising 

 and the cultivation of cereals are the 

 chief occupations. Pop. 64,400. 



Minas Geraes.'. Inland state 

 of S.E. Brazil. It is bounded N. 

 by Bahia and S. by Rio de Janeiro. 

 The most populous and the fifth 

 largest state of Brazil, it is 

 watered by the Sao Francisco, the 

 Parahyba, their tributaries, and 

 many other rivers. Mainly a 



