1594 THE STORY OF THE UNIVERSE 



well furnished with natural offensive and defensive 

 weapons were a mere freak of nature, no satisfactory 

 and philosophical explanation of the phenomenon 

 could be given. 



Scientific investigators have to lay aside their won- 

 der, and laboriously set about finding a solution to 

 the most intricate and puzzling phenomena both in 

 natural and physical science. 



Mimicry was first used by Mr. W. H. Bates to 

 denote the advantageous and generally protective re- 

 semblance assumed by one species of animal or plant 

 to another. 



It will be seen further on that the resemblance is 

 not confined to one species of animal to another spe- 

 cies of animal, and one species of plant "to a plant of 

 quite a distinct species, but that it also exists between 

 animals and plants. 



Mr. A. R. Wallace, who, by his most patient and 

 skilful researches in the domain of animal life, has 

 clearly defined and limited the term mimicry as ap- 

 plied in biology, says : "A certain species of plant or 

 animal possesses some special means of defence from 

 its enemies, such as a sting, a powerful and disagree- 

 able odor, a nauseous taste, or a hard integument or 

 covering. Some other species, inhabiting the same 

 district or part of it, and not itself provided with 

 the same means of defence, closely resembles die 

 first species in all external points of form and color, 

 though often very different in structure and unre- 

 lated in the biological order." 



In South America there are certain butterflies, the 

 Heliconidae, which are remarkable for the variety 



