132 



OUR SEARCH FOR A WILDERNESS. 



this is seen in the flourishing tree-ferns planted in the Botani- 

 cal Gardens. 



Insects were not particularly abundant in Georgetown, 

 that is, for a tropical country. One day Mr. Rodway, with 

 his accustomed kindness, brought us two very interesting 

 chrysalidsof the swallow-tailed butterfly, Papilio polydamiis, 

 illustrating the remarkable color variation in this species. 

 Both were found in his yard, a few feet from each other, one 



Fig. 67. Young Elania Flycatchers. 



suspended among green leaves and the other on a wooden 

 stairway which was painted a brick-red. One of the chrys- 

 alids was leaf-green in color while the other was brown with 

 brick-red trimmings! 



There was one remarkable exception to the scarcity of 

 insects in Georgetown. Late in Februarv, a moth-like 

 Homopterus insect, Poecilopicra plialaenoidcs, was present in 

 enormous numbers on the Saman trees which line many of 

 the streets. The largest individuals had wings almost an 

 inch in length of a light cream color, covered for about half 



