1972] 
Y oung — Dismorphia virgo 
173 
may be inferred from (1) the host plant, (2) the appearance and 
behavior of larvae, and ( 3 ) low adult population densities. 
The genus Inga , as in other Leguminosae, is not known to contain 
toxic compounds (Erhlich and Raven, 1965; Levin, 1971) and it 
is therefore unlikely that invertebrate herbivores feeding on it would 
be unpalatable to potential predators. However, developmental dif- 
ferences in levels of various secondary compounds have not been 
studied in the Leguminosae, so little is known about age-specific dif- 
ferences in such compounds in leaves of selected genera such as 
Inga. 
Larvae are cryptically-colored and they also behave in a cryptic 
manner. Such morphological and behavioral crypsis has apparently 
evolved as an adaptive strategy of concealment against predators. 
In the presence of unpalatability, it can be argued that aposematic 
coloration and behavior replaces crypsis as an adaptive strategy in 
some insects (Brower and Brower, 1964). 
Of the several requisites underlying effective Batesian mimicry 
(see Rettenmeyer, 1970), one of the most important is that the 
mimic always be less abundant locally than the model. However, 
depending on the degree of unpalatability of the model and the 
memory characteristics of the predators, it is possible to have mimics 
more abundant than models and still have effective mimicry. Thus, 
for a butterfly which is a Batesian mimic of an only slightly um 
palatable model, low local adult population density in habitats where 
the model is abundant is essential. Thus, for a butterfly which is a 
Batesian mimic of an only slightly unpalatable model, low local adult 
population density in habitats where the model is abundant is essen- 
tial. This property is indicated by the data in Table 2. The exploita- 
tion of a courtship strategy characterized by males patrolling specific 
sites on a regular basis in the habitat is also indicative of low popu- 
lation density in this butterfly. 
Further evidence, from phylogenetic considerations, of the palata- 
bility of D. virgo is given by Brower and Brower ( 1964), who point 
out that the Dismorphiinae, being the most primitive subfamily of 
the Pieridae, are most likely palatable, since unpalatability is held 
to be a highly evolved trait of more advanced subfamilies. 
Since the Ithomiinae are known to be a very unpalatable group of 
tropical butterflies (cf. Brower and Brower, 1964), there is little 
doubt that O. zelica pagapa can act as a model for D. virgo , if selec- 
tion pressures favor the development of mimetic association at Bajo 
la Hondura and Cuesta Angel. The Ithomiinae presumably derive 
their highly reputed unpalatability from the Solanaceae (Ehrlich 
