PHYSICAL FEATURES OF BIRDS. 273 



With exceedingly few exceptions, the male is more 

 brightly colored than the female . He displays his brightest 

 colors at the opening of the mating season. This seems 

 to be for the attraction of the females, and it is perhaps 

 an example of egoism. The most attractive male would 

 be likely to attract the most desirable female for the 

 strongest nestlings. Not that either has the power to 

 reason it out that way, and see the desirable end before 

 the impulse to action, but the instincts of the individual 

 tend in this direction. Living begets the habit of living, 

 and that living is naturally to the fullest extent of the 

 individual's powers. 



