Origin of Species Variorum

Comparison with 1866

the mimicked and others as the mimickers? Mr. Bates satisfactorily answers this question, by showing that the form which is imitated keeps the usual dress of the group to which it belongs, whilst the counterfeiters have changed their dress and do not resemble their nearest allies.

We are next led to inquire what reason can possibly be assigned for certain butterflies and moths so often assuming the dress of other and quite distinct forms; why, to the perplexity of naturalists, has nature conde- scended to the tricks of the stage? Mr. Bates has, we cannot doubt, hit on the true explanation. The mocked forms, which always abound in numbers, must habitually escape, to a large extent, destruction, otherwise they could not exist in such swarms; and Mr. Bates never saw them preyed on by birds and certain large insects which attack other butterflies; he suspects that this immunity is owing to a peculiar and offensive odour that they emit. The mocking forms, on the other hand, which inhabit the same district, are comparatively rare, and belong to rare groups; hence they must suffer habitually from some danger, for otherwise, from the number of eggs laid by all butterflies, they would, if not persecuted, in three or four generations swarm over the whole country. Now if a member of one of these persecuted and rare groups were to assume a dress so like that of a well-protected species that it continually deceived the practised eyes of an entomologist, it would often deceive predacious birds and insects, and thus escape entire annihilation. It may almost be said that Mr. Bates has witnessed the process by which the mimickers have come so closely to resemble the mimicked; for he shows that some of the forms of Leptalis, whether these be ranked as species or varieties, which mimic so many other butterflies, vary much. In one district several varieties

We are next led to inquire what reason can possibly be assigned for certain butterflies and moths so often assuming the dress of another and quite distinct form; why, to the perplexity of naturalists, has nature condescended to the tricks of the stage? Mr. Bates has, no doubt, hit on the true explanation. The mocked forms, which always abound in numbers, must habitually escape destruction to a large extent, otherwise they could not exist in such swarms; and Mr. Bates never saw them preyed on by birds and certain large insects which attack other butterflies. He has good reason to believe that this immunity is owing to a peculiar and offensive odour which they emit. The mocking forms, on the other hand, that inhabit the same district, are comparatively rare, and belong to rare groups; hence they must suffer habitually from some danger, for otherwise, from the number of eggs laid by all butterflies, they would in three or four generations swarm over the whole country. Now if a member of one of these persecuted and rare groups were to assume a dress so like that of a well-protected species that it continually deceived the practised eyes of an entomologist, it would often deceive predacious birds and insects, and thus escape much destruction. Mr. Bates may almost be said to have actually witnessed the process by which the mimickers have come so closely to resemble the mimicked; for he found that some of the forms of Leptalis which mimic so many other butterflies, varied in an extreme degree. In one district several varieties