COSMIC PHILOSOPHY 



from the heliconidae as a lion from a buffalo. 

 But of these pieridae there is one genus, the 

 leptalis, which exactly resembles the heliconias 

 in external appearance. So close is the resem- 

 blance that such expert naturalists as Mr. Bates 

 and Mr. Wallace have been repeatedly deceived 

 by it at the time of capture. Moreover, each 

 species of this genus leptalis is a copy of the 

 particular species of heliconia which lives in the 

 same district. Every band and spot and fleck 

 of colour in the heliconia is accurately repro- 

 duced in the leptalis ; and besides this, the lazy 

 mode of flight is also imitated ; while in point 

 of numbers, we find about one leptalis to a 

 thousand heHconias. Nor is this the only in- 

 stance. So preeminently favoured are these 

 beautiful insects by their disgusting taste, that 

 they are exactly imitated by at least three gen- 

 era of diurnal moths. In other parts of the 

 world similar phenomena have been noticed. 

 The relationship of the leptalis to the heliconia 

 is repeated in India, in the PhiHppine Islands, 

 in the Malay archipelago, and in various parts 

 of Africa ; the protected insect being, in all 

 these cases, very much less numerous than the 

 insect whose colours it mimics. In similar wise, 

 bees and wasps are often imitated by beetles, 

 by flies, and even by moths. 



For further details I must refer to Mr. Wal- 

 lace's essay, which is a singularly beautiful 



38 



