Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-12-29

not my dog, with more presc'cnce, stopped
and nosed the leaf, telling me, after his
fashion, to look.
This / did, and found this green object
that had come scurrying down was not
leaf at all, but great green katydid with
gauze-like wings, protected by covers that
were so exact in their imitation OF other
leaves in general that any one would have
been deceived.
The insect was a natural mimic, and
even it's flight downward from the tree
was protective one, calculated to deceive
any feathered enemy that might have
been in the vicinity. This phase of animal
life, the feature of protective resemblances,
is one we'll calculated to attract our at
tention and cause mceasing wondernent.
Nature has widely endowed certain de-
fenseleSS animals with certain pro-
tective resemblance; made them mimics
of their surroundings, so that they may
avoid their enemies, and the extent to
which this is carried among certain ami
mails, especially insects, makes the study
one of absorbing interest.
In all life there is a certain adaptation
to it's peculiar surroundings. Gaily tinted
birds are not, as a rule, found on white
sadly wastes, but in forests where there
is deep coloring and the contrast Is not
great. The tawny lion, the giraffe, the
ostrich, are forms which assimilate their
surroundings. In California the horned
toad is almost as invisible as the sand in
which it lives. "A little canon toad mimcs
the rocks upon which it rests, in color,
while the frogs of the east are hardly dis
tinguishabls from the green reeds among
which they hide.
A Deceptive Resemblance.
This peculiar method of defense Is partic-
ularly marked among insects. Some years
ago travelling fakir stopped at bunga-
low in India and offered for a small sum
to show the guests of the sahib, who were
new in India, miracle. Told to go ahead
he produced a small tree with leaves about
three inches long. which he thrust into the
ground, then took from a large box car
ried by an attendant a dozen butterflies of
great beauty. After the guests had ex-
amined them and assured themselves that
the insects were alive the fakir tossed
them one by one into the air. Each alight-
ed on the tree and became Invisible. When
all had disappeared the fakir asked the
satib to look for them. The Englshman
examined the tree carefully, but failed to
find the dozen butterflies, each of which
was four inches across.
They had all heard of the Indian hyp-
notism, and thought that this possibly
was an instance in hand but the laughing
fakir caught up the tree and giving it
shake the insects noated in the air for
moment. and then gathered about the tree
again to mysteriously disappear.
The fakir then pointed out the Illusion;
eyes, and so mimicked the leaves when
their wings were folded that the decep-
ton was perfect, both in color and shape.
There were even the delicate mold spots,
the central or midrib of the leaf and the
delicate lateral branches from it. while
the stem Of the leaf was closely initiated
by the lower portion of the wings which
were pressed against the stem.
This mimic, known to science as kallina,
if followed by a bird simply alights on
bush or tree and becomes invisible. and
the fakir has simply taken advantage of
the natural protection of the butterfly.
The Walking sticks.
The same protection is seen in many of
our common butterflies that mimic foweps
or leaves. Remarkable resemblances are
noticed among the moths some mimicking
bits of wood or stone, so that when they
alight they bee OEe at once invisible and
thus escape from every possible pursuer.
Some interesting instances of mimicry
are found in India. A naturalist noted IA
butterfly here that was not only remark
able mimic but when followed it initiated
the peculiar flight of poisonous butterfly
that was obnoxioIs to the birds.
In almost every group of insects we find
this protective resemblance, and those
among the walking sticks and walking
leaves are the most wonderful. In the
latter we have an example of an insect so
exactly resembling green leaf that 1T
would bear close examination without dis
covery. The insect looks as though it
might have been made up from several
pieces CT leaves. They are of n vivid green,
with delicate leaves, exactly as one finds In
a leaf.
While the phyllium resembles leaf, the
phGsnidae is a mimic of twig or branch.
The long straight body is a perfect stick,
the legs resembling twigs branching from
it, and when walking they move in so de-
liberate a manner that even then the IL
fusion is not destroyed. A South American
walking stick is a vCritable giant almost
n foot in length. These are green, resem-
bling young shoots and are found among
green verdure: but one observed by Bolt
the English naturalist, was perfect
mimic of a dead twig, and had rpon its
sides and legs curious excrescc!Ices that
rninlickcd fungus growths, so that the bird
who had seen il moving would consider it
nothing but a dried twig
The curious insects known as the mantis
are remarkable for their powers of MINI
icry. Their movements are slow; their
bodies and legs semble twigs, and they
are by this disguise enabled to creep upon
their prey. one species has been known to
seize and eat small birds, who, thinking it
a bit of the branch, so fall into its clutch
es Perhaps the most remarkable mimic
amcng these insects is pink mantis of
India. that is almost exact in it's resem-
bIance to an orchid. The object here Is
evidently to capture insects that alight on
it by mistake
A Spiders Device.
Many insects protect their eggs or young
| by unconscious mimicry. This Is true Of
the egg cases of many insects. Those of
| the mantis resemble in tint the immediate
objects; while South American moth, in
| the caterpillar form, makes a lattice work
cocoon that resembles a seed.
Many Of the spiders mimics. In my
| garden 1 had yellow spiders that lived in
| The flowers of yellow nasturtiums; green
ones that offered little contrast to the
| rosebush upon which they lay in wait for
! the helpless aphidae.
| The most extraordinary attempt at de-
] Tense it was ever my good fortune to OBJ
| serve on the part of a spider was one in
| which the insect not only disguised, but
/ rendered itself completely insensble
was wandering through the bog cedar
1 bush of one of the Florida keys sixty
| miles from Cuba. when L came upon a
| huge web that completely barred the way;
| the long cables extended as braces in
| every direction, while in the center poised
a big yellow spider. The moment it caught
| sight of me it began to swing the web, first
slowly. and then more rapidly, until in a
| short time the spider had disappeared from
| view, although not foot from my eyes;
| 1t was simply vibrating in its web, but so
rapidly that my eyes could not follow 1t.
L