MIMICRY. 531 



be more or less active mimicry in two small British moths. 

 Pentkina gentianana, in its larval condition, feeds on the pith of 

 the receptacle in teasel-heads, seed-heads of Dipsacus sylvestris ; 

 while another moth (Eupce cilia roseana) feeds on the seeds them- 

 selves. " The habit of P. gentianana on its emergence is to sit 

 with head buried between the spinous scales of the receptacle, 

 and with the posterior portion of its wings projecting a little 

 beyond them. Roughly divided (as the insect is into a light 

 upper and a dark lower part), its resemblance when in this 

 position to a bird's excrement is very noticeable. If a number of 

 teasel-heads be examined, it will be found that in some instances 

 the inner part of the seeds — i.e. that part which is in contact with 

 adjacent seeds — assumes a bright pink colour. Now, E. roseana 

 has a very frequent habit of sitting lengthways along the spines 

 of the scales abjve referred to, and here again the reseuiblance 

 of the insect, with its colouring of rosy pink shading into yellow, 

 to a partly displaced seed is worthy of notice. ''* One of the 

 strongest illustrations of protective mimicry by a butterfly, and 

 one of the most widely known — for who has not read Wallace's 

 'Malay Archipelago'? — is afforded by leaf-butterflies of the genus 

 Kallinia. But, as Mr. Badenoch has well enquired, '• Of what 

 avail would be the disguise were the insect prone to settle upon a 

 flower, or green leaf, or other inappropriate surface ? " t The 

 partiality of this insect for settling on dry and withered leaves 

 appears a true instance of active mimicry. The idea of some 

 conscious volition in the protective habits of this butterfly is sup- 

 ported by remarks made by the Indian naturalist who writes under 

 the name of " Eha" : — " They see a little better in front of them, 

 and I have noticed that the leaf-butterfly always alights head 

 downwards, so as to face anything coming up the tree, which is 

 much the most likely direction of assault from a Lizard. (In 

 pictures generally, and in the show-case at the British Museum 

 (Nat. Hist.), the butterfly is turned the opposite way, facing 

 upwards, which is no doubt more appropriate to its character as 

 a leaf; but that is a detail rather above the intelligence of a 

 Lizard : at any rate, I never saw a Kallima sit in that position.) " \ 



* H. F. Fryer, ' Ent. Month. Mag.' 2nd ser. vol. x. p. 6. 

 f ' Romance of the Insect World,' p. 217. 



I ' Natural Science,' vol. is. p. 299. — This is in direct contradiction to 



2m 2 



