*oo The Descent of Man. Part IT. 



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, together with the 

 long secondary feathers, when they are all expanded together so 

 as to form the great fan or shield. 



The case of the male Argus pheasant is eminently interesting, 

 because it affords good evidence that the most refined beauty may 

 serve as a sexual charm, and for no other purpose. We must con- 

 clude that this is the case, as the secondary and primary wing- 

 feathers are not at all displayed, and the ball and socket orna- 

 ments are not exhibited in full perfection, until the male assumes 

 the attitude of courtship. The Argus pheasant does not possess 

 brilliant colours, so that his success in love appears to depend on 

 the great size of his plumes, and on the elaboration of the most 

 elegant patterns. Many will declare that it is utterly incredible 

 that a female bird should be able to appreciate fine shading and 

 exquisite patterns. It is undoubtedly a marvellous fact that she 

 should possess this almost human degree of taste. He who 

 thinks that he can safely gauge the discrimination and taste of 

 the lower animals may deny that the female Argus pheasant can 

 appreciate such refined beauty ; but he will then be compelled 

 to admit that the extraordinary attitudes assumed by the male 

 during the act of courtship, by which the wonderful beauty of 

 his plumage is fully displayed, are purposeless ; and this is a 

 conclusion which I for one will never admit. 



Although so many pheasants and allied gallinaceous birds 

 carefully display their plumage before the females, it is remark- 

 able, as Mr. Bartlett informs me, that this is not the case with the 

 dull-coloured Eared and Cheer pheasants ( Crossoptilon auritum 

 and Phasianus wallichii) ; so that these birds seem conscious 

 that they have little beauty to display. Mr. Bartlett has never 

 seen the males of either of these species fighting together, though 

 he has not had such good opportunities for observing the Cheer 

 as the Eared pheasant. Mr. Jenner "Weir, also, finds that all 

 male birds with rich or strongly-characterised plumage are 

 more quarrelsome than the dull-coloured species belonging to 

 the same groups. The goldfinch, for instance, is far more 

 pugnacious than the linnet, and the blackbird than the thrush. 

 Those birds which undergo a seasonal change of plumage like- 

 wise becomes much more pugnacious at the period when they 

 are most gaily ornamented. No doubt the males of some 

 obscurely-coloured birds fight desperately together, but it 

 appears that when sexual selection has been highly influential, 



