AMORPHIN/E. 397 



on July 8th. The well-known position assumed by the moths, when 

 at rest, is undoubtedly protective so far as our British species 

 are concerned. M. tiliae is said to rest on the young shoots that 

 spring directly from the trunk of the lime, and to simulate a group 

 of small leaves. I have seen one hanging from the top of a split 

 oak fence, and it so exactly resembled a withered leaf that none 

 but a practised eye could detect the difference. S. ocellata rests 

 on bushes or hedges, and is said to exactly resemble a withered 

 leaf or spray of leaves. I have never found one at large, but 

 even in a breeding-cage, notwithstanding its large size and rich 

 coloration, it is by no means a conspicuous object. That the ocellated 

 spots are of some special use to the moth, is very evident, because 

 they are such a constant character, and moreover, are well 

 developed in the many allied species that are distributed over 

 nearly the whole of the North Temperate Zone. A. populi is said to 

 rest during the day on the trunks of poplars or on hedge-banks. 

 I have only once found the moth at rest, and then it was on the 

 trunk of a poplar, where it was not at all well protected. All 

 three species are said to fly slowly and heavily at dusk, and again 

 later in the night. I have never seen any of them on the wing 

 spontaneously, but have thrown up A, populi and S. ocellata during 

 the day ; they had a feeble and fluttering flight, something like 

 that of a bat, but slower. Bred specimens of both species are 

 usually lively and active about dusk, and the males again from 

 about 10.30 p.m. to midnight." 



Of the distribution of the British species, Bacot says : " Mimas 

 tiliae is much less common than either of the other two species. 

 It is fairly plentiful and widely distributed in the south and south- 

 east of England, scarce in the midlands, and very scarce, if not 

 altogether absent, in the north of England, Scotland, Ireland and 

 Wales. On the Continent, according to Kirby, it is common 

 except in the extreme north and south ; it also occurs in Siberia, 

 and there is a specimen in the British Museum collection from Sierra 

 Leone (!). S. ocellata is commonly distributed in the south and east 

 of England, less commonly in the north of England and south of 

 Scotland, in Ireland it is scarce but widely distributed. It occurs 

 throughout Europe and northern Asia, and closely allied forms are 

 found over nearly the whole of the North Temperate Zone. A. populi 

 is found throughout Europe, except in the extreme north and south, 

 and also in northern and western Asia. Barrett says : ' It 

 appears to occur in all parts of the United Kingdom excepting 

 the west of Scotland. It is scarce in the west of England and Wales, 

 and in Ireland it is found wherever poplar is common. Formerly 

 it was abundant in the south of England and even in London 

 now, however, it is rarely seen in the suburbs of London, and seems 

 to be generally less common throughout the country.' My own 

 experience is quite the reverse of that of Barrett. I have 

 always found it common in the suburbs of London, in fact, much 

 more plentiful in and around London than in any part of England 

 that I have visited. In the City of London Society's ' ten-mile 

 list,' Dr. Buckell tells me that it is recorded as occurring over the 

 whole area, It also occurs in the west of Scotland." 



