92 SEXUAL SELECTION: BIRDS. Part II. 



It may well be asked, could such artistically-sbaded 

 oi'naments have been formed by means of sexual selec- 

 tion? But it will be convenient to defer giving an 

 answer to this question until we treat in the next 

 chapter of the principle of gradation. 



The jDrimary wing-feathers, which in most gallina- 

 ceous birds are uniformly coloured, are in the Argus 

 pheasant not less wonderful objects than the secondary 

 wino^-feathers. Thev are of a soft brown tint with 

 numerous dark spots, each of which consists of two or 

 three black dots with a surrounding dark zone. But 

 the chief ornament is a space parallel to the dark-blue 

 shaft, which in outline forms a perfect second feather 

 lying within the true feather. This inner part is 

 coloured of a lighter chesnut, and is thickly dotted 

 with minute white points. I have shewn this feather to 

 several persons, and many have admired it even more 

 than the ball-and-socket feathers, and have declared 

 that it was more like a work of art than of nature. 

 Now these feathers are quite hidden on all ordinary 

 occasions, but are fully displayed when the long secon- 

 dary feathers are erected, though in a widely different 

 manner ; for they are expanded in front like two little 

 fans or shields, one on each side of the breast near the 

 ground. 



The case of the male Argus pheasant is eminently 

 interesting, because it affords good evidence that the 

 most refined beauty may serve as a charm for the 

 female, and for no other purpose. We must conclude 

 that this is the case, as the primary wing-feathers are 

 never displayed, and the ball-and-socket ornaments are 

 not exhibited in full perfection, except when the male 

 assumes the attitude of courtship. The Argus pheasant 

 does not possess brilliant colours, so that his success in 

 courtship appears to have depended on the great size of 



