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Show 240 MR. E. B. TOULTON ON THE PROTECTIVE [Mar. 1, to assume the existence of any great body of confirmatory evidence until it has all been rigidly tested and recorded. It will be unnecessary to separate the larvae from the other stages, because the meaning of imitative colours is equally clear whenever they occur, while the warning colours of imagos might in some cases be mistaken for those of other significance. I will proceed at once to tabulate everything I have been able to find recorded, and will afterwards consider in detail the more remarkable cases. I have already implied that I believe the larvae oi Papilio machaon should be included in the Table given below. Prof. Meldola has since shown me that Mr. T. W . Wood has also taken this view of the colours of P. machaon (see a paper in 'The Student,' 1868, entitled "Insects in Disguise"). I believe that the bright green colouring broken up by black markings is very well adapted for concealment among the much-divided leaves of the Umbelliferae on which the larva feeds. I also consider that the imago of S. fuciformis should be included (see Table V., pp. 242-259). Looking back at this list we see that as a whole its results offer the most decided contrast to those of the previous lists, inasmuch as the vast majority of species are in this case devoured with relish. But while it thus supports the converse side of Wallace's suggestion, this is by no means so universally true as Jenner Weir's earlier experiments led him to believe. Out of a total of 44 different species, or stages, of Lepidoptera, we find 7 exceptions, viz :-Imagos of S. ligustri, P. bueephala, and 0. antiqua; pupae of V. io, V. urtica, P. bueephala; and the larva of il/. typica. Two of these appear for the first time in Table V., while the others have appeared before in other stages in the earlier tables. Deferring the consideration of the latter, we will take the two species rather more in detail. Imago of Sphinx ligustri.-I think the evidence in this case speaks for itself, and demonstrates very completely the protective importance of mere size, unaccompanied by other alarming features or by any means of active defence. The species is admirably protected at rest and must be most carefully concealed. After twenty years, during which I have looked for insects, I have only once seen the moth at rest. Again, its flight is probably as rapid as that of any species in the world. The behaviour oi Lacerta viridis seemed to clearly show that the moth was highly palatable, as we should expect from its very perfect means of evading its enemies. And yet the much smaller L. muralis would not touch the insect. If the supposition be raised that the moth possessed some smell, which was disliked by L. muralis, but to which L. viridis was indifferent, I can only say that I have met with no other instance of any difference of tastes when I experimented upon the two Lizards with the same species of insect. And if this be the correct explanation why the moth was untouched after spending many hours in the cage of L. muralis, I cannot but think that L. viridis would have shown some reluctance in devouring it, although it might have ultimately eaten it under the impulse of hunger. And, again, L. muralis was more ravenous than any of m y Lizards ; and the above tables show clearly that I have / |
