Colour and its Recognition. 
1879.] 
399 
Mr. Allen takes exception in a passage which closely coin- 
cides with our remarks on the same subject.* 
In a chapter on the “ Direct Reaction of the Colour- 
Sense upon the Animal Integuments ” the author proceeds 
to the demonstration of what we may call his initial law. 
He seeks to show, by a multitude of instances, that the 
most beautiful insedts and birds are such as haunt flowers 
and fruits, either feeding diredtly upon their pollen, nedtar, 
sweet juices, &c., or preying upon minute insedts attradted 
there for the same purpose. He cites the observation re- 
peatedly made by travelling naturalists, that where the flora 
is most beautiful the fauna is correspondingly splendid, 
whilst if the one is dingy and insignificant the same charac- 
ters apply to the other. Exceptions will doubtless occur to 
the mind of the naturalist, especially if he be a student of 
insedt-life. Thus though the author remarks, with much 
general truth, that “ first in order of ugliness must be placed 
the carrion-feeders who live upon decaying bodies or animal 
excrements,” yet if we look over a tolerably complete assort- 
ment of beetles of the great neo-tropical genus Phaneus — 
all, be it remembered, dung- and carrion-devourers — we find 
almost every variety of rich iridescent and metallic hues, 
emerald-greens, golden and ruddy bronzes, gorgeous blues, 
and purples. Great splendour may also be found among 
the Coprides, another group of filth-devourers ; and even our 
common English dor-beetles show on their under surfaces 
pure and beautiful metallic hues. Sometimes, again, one 
and the same pattern or arrangement of colour may be 
traced in a number of species belonging to distinct groups, 
and feeding on substances of a totally different nature. For 
instances of this kind the reader is referred to the “ Monthly 
Journal of Science ” for February (p. 196). To the cases 
there mentioned may be added the death’s-head moth, the 
convolvulus-hawk moth, &c. Mr. Allen himself refers to 
the tiger-beetles as exquisitely beautiful and highly carnivo- 
rous ; and many other rapacious beetles, of the genera 
Carabus, Calosoma, Pcecilus, &c., are remarkable for the 
loveliness of their tints. Still we do not feel warranted in 
concluding that these apparent exceptions, and others which 
might be adduced, justify the rejection of Mr. Allen’s law. 
Our knowledge of the diet and habits of insedts is still very 
imperfedt. Perhaps, too, the cases we have mentioned are 
“ residual phenomena,” which on further study will point 
the way to some further generalisation. 
* Quarterly Journal of Science, vol. viii., p. 459, 
