INSECT LIFE 187 



meadow-brown butterflies, their poor wings worn as 

 jagged as those of the comma, linger on, but their 

 junketings are nearly over. The ringlet and the large 

 heath butterflies succeeded them before the end of the 

 month, and occupy the bramble bushes by day and 

 night. One year, though I watched closely in their 

 woodland haunts in another district, among hazel, oak, 

 and brake fern, I could find very few large heath 

 butterflies settled for the night. But I found many 

 on the bramble bushes in the birch wood. Like 

 meadow-brown, grayling, and other butterflies, the 

 large heath, settling for the evening and night, always 

 draws down its folded upper wings, so that the con- 

 spicuous spot or " eye " on the back of them is hid. 

 One effect of this is to make the large heath a trifle 

 obscurer at rest on the bramble leaf than it would be 

 with the wing up. But somehow I cannot believe the 

 real explanation of this withdrawal of the " eye " from 

 view is protection of the butterfly from enemies of 

 prey by inconspicuity, or by assimilation to surround- 

 ings (gross words to use of a sylph like this butterfly ! 

 but I know not how to avoid them). My notion is 

 that there is no night enemy that need be cheated if 

 it could be cheated thus. Protection of butterfly 

 beauty against weather is, I think, the meaning of the 

 withdrawn " eye." If you set out to look for butter- 

 flies at rest matching their environment, no doubt you 

 shall find them. The small skipper butterfly sleeping 

 on the spear thistle looked greeny-grey, I noticed, 



