v COLOURS OF ANIMALS 349 



{1. Protective colours. 

 2. Wamingcoloun. { J gSSBCSSSBi, .. 

 3. Sexual colours. 

 4. Normal colours. 1 

 Plants 5. Attractive colours. 



It is now proposed, firstly, to point out the nature of the 

 phenomena presented under each of these heads; then to 

 explain the general laws of the production of colour in 

 nature ; and, lastly, to show how far the varied phenomena 

 of animal coloration can be explained by means of those 

 laws, acting in conjunction with the laws of evolution and 

 natural selection. 



Protective Colours 



The nature of the two first groups, protective and warn- 

 ing colours, has been so fully detailed and illustrated in my 

 chapter on "Mimicry and other Protective Eesemblances 

 among Animals," that very little need be added here except 

 a few words of general explanation. Protective colours are 

 exceedingly prevalent in nature, comprising those of all the 

 white arctic animals, the sandy -coloured desert forms, and 

 the green birds and insects of tropical forests. It also com- 

 prises thousands of cases of special resemblance of birds to 

 the surroundings of their nests, and especially of insects to 

 the bark, leaves, flowers, or soil, on or amid which they 

 dwell. Mammalia, fishes, and reptiles, as well as mollusca 

 and other marine invertebrates, present similar phenomena; 

 and the more the habits of animals are investigated, the more 

 numerous are found to be the cases in which their colours 

 tend to conceal them, either from their enemies or from the 

 creatures they prey upon. One of the last -observed and 

 most curious of these protective resemblances has been com- 

 municated to me by Sir Charles Dilke. He was shown in 

 Java a pink -coloured Mantis which, when at rest, exactly 

 resembled a pink orchis-flower. The mantis is a carnivorous 

 insect which lies in wait for its prey ; and, by its resemblance 

 to a flower, the insects it feeds on would be actually attracted 

 towards it. This one is said to feed especially on butter- 



1 Many, or perhaps all, of these are now believed to be diversely coloured 

 for purposes of recognition. See Darwinism, p. 217. 



