292 



SEXUAL SELECTION: MAMMALS. 



[Part II. 



a manner, and are furnished with such curious and elegant 

 crests of hair, that we can hardly avoid looking at these 

 characters as having been gained for the sake of orna- 

 ment. The accompanying figures (Figs. 70 to 74) serve 



Fig. 70.— Bead of Semnopithecus rubicundus. This and the following figures 

 (from Prof. Gervais) are given to show the odd arrangement and develop- 

 ment of the hair on the head. 



to show the arrangement of the hair on the face and head 

 in several species. It is scarcely conceivable that these 

 crests of hair and strongly-contrasted colors of the fur 

 and skin can be the result of mere variability without the 

 aid of selection ; and it is inconceivable that they can be 

 of any ordinary use to these animals. If so, they have 

 probably been gained through sexual selection, though 

 transmitted equally, or almost equally, to both sexes. 



