OAK-LAPPET. 207 



hue, and wearing little of motive semblance. We have said a 

 leaf; but we should rather, perhaps, direct the unpractised eye 

 to seek what more resembles a leafy group or cluster; 1 an 

 object for which, on a transitory glance, the four large wings 

 of the Lappet Moth 2 are very likely to be mistaken. These 

 are of shaded brown, glossed with violet, stiff, strongly-ribbed, 

 and deeply scallopped, and when the insect is in repose (its 

 usual state in the day-time) they are so disposed by projection 

 of the hinder pair beyond the foremost, as to deviate from the 

 usual moth-like contour, and thus approach more nearly to 

 that of congregated leaves. 



The seeming vagaries of Dame Nature in thus, as it were, 

 dressing up some few among her children in masquerade 

 attire, have led to a deal of curious inquiry into the " why and 

 because" of such unusual proceeding. Besides such copies 

 as those above noted, wherein the animal is made to put on 

 the vegetable form, there are noticeable among insects a 

 number of remarkable similarities in colouring with the 

 leaves, or flowers, or bark of the plants and trees they feed 

 on, or frequent; and, what is yet more curious, with the 

 dead and artificially-wrought substances, such as stone walls 

 and wooden palings, on which they are most frequently seen 

 resting. Of the kind of imitation last mentioned we have 

 noticed several instances in the colouring of moths found 

 commonly on oak palings. We have one in our possession 

 wherein not only does the painting of the wings resemble the 

 broad surface of the wood, copied as accurately as by the most 

 skilful grainer; but even the transverse cutting at the pale's 

 end would seem to have served as a pattern for the striated 

 covering of the insect's shoulders. 



Our subject was commenced by a notice of a few remarkable 

 objects in the insect world, which bear a particular resemblance 

 to others in the vegetable kingdom. Let us now point out, as 



1 Vignette. 2 Gastropacha quercifolia. 



