292 



SEXUAL SELECTION: MAMMALS. 



[Part IL 



a manner, and an- iurni^lRMl with such curious and elegant 

 crests ot'liair, 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 



Fio. 70.— Head of Semnopithccus nibicundus. This and the followinpr flpmres 

 (from Prof. Gervaisi are jrivcn to ghow the odd arrangement and develop- 

 ment of lUe 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. 



