=The Coloration of Animals and Environment.= The colors of animals often harmonize most wonderfully with their surroundings. Thus green is a common color of animals in the evergreen forests of the tropics; white is the prevailing color in the arctic regions; and a yellowish hue in desert places. In the evergreen forests of tropical America, whole groups of birds are found whose fundamental color is green; there the parrots and fruit-eating pigeons are commonly green; the bee-eaters, leaf-thrushes, and many other birds, have so much green in their color as to add greatly to their concealment in the dense green foliage. In the desert places, the lion, the desert antelope and the camel harmonize with the color of the rocks and sand among which they live. In the Arctic regions the polar bear, the Greenland falcon, and the American polar hare are white. We have further the dusky hue of creatures that haunt the night, such as mice, moles, and bats; and the gorgeous tints of fishes that swim among the coral reefs. These local color adaptations of animals are of great use to them, either enabling them to escape the notice of their enemies or to come upon their prey with the least risk of being detected. Certain groups of animals have a local color-adaptation, and may be noticed under the heading of _Protective Coloration_; others have acquired a wonderful resemblance to surrounding inanimate objects, such as leaves, twigs, bird-droppings, flowers, etc., and may be described under the heading of Protective Imitation of particular objects, or _Protective Resemblance_; closely allied to the latter are those resemblances to surrounding objects which are not so much for the purpose of protecting the animals from enemies as for attracting their prey, and these resemblances, therefore, will be described under the title of _Alluring Coloration_. Other animals have such color patterns as to be very conspicuous in their surroundings; these animals are usually very poisonous or possess other deleterious qualities that cause beasts of prey to avoid them; hence these animals may be said to possess _Warning Coloration_. Many animals that are very desirable food for carnivorous creatures have acquired, in past ages, a remarkable resemblance to these dangerous animals with warning coloration, and are treated of under the title of _Mimicry_. There are still other groups of animals whose peculiar coloration enables the member of a herd or flock which may have become separated from the herd to readily recognize its companions at a distance as friends, and thus distinguish them from enemies. The color patterns of these animals may be classed under the heading of _Recognition Marks_.