SEXUAL SELECTION 563 



wing-feather (Pig. 58), nearest to the body, is marked like 

 the other feathers, with oblique, longitudinal, rather irregu- 

 lar rows of very dark spots. The basal spot, or that nearest 

 the shaft, in the five lower rows (excluding the lowest one) 

 is a little larger than the other spots of the same row, and 

 a little more elongated in a transverse direction. It differs 

 also from the other spots by being bordered on its upper 

 side with some dull fulvous shading. But this spot is not 

 in any way more remarkable than those on the plumage 

 of many birds, and might easily be overlooked. The next 

 higher spot does not differ at all from the upper ones ia 

 the same row. The larger basal spots occupy exactly the 

 same relative position on these feathers as do the perfect 

 ocelli bn the longer wing-feathers. 



By looking to the next two or three succeeding wing- 

 feathers, an absolutely insensible gradation can be traced 

 from one of the last described basal spots, together with 

 the next higher one in the same row, to a curious orna- 

 ment, which cannot be called an ocellus, and which I will 

 name, from the want of a better term, an "elliptic orna- 

 ment." These are shown in the accompanying figure (Fig. 

 59). We here see several oblique rows. A, B, 0, D, etc. 

 (see the lettered diagram on the right hand), of dark spots 

 of the usual character. Each row of spots runs down to, 

 and is connected with, one of the elliptic ornaments, in ex- 

 actly the same manner as each stripe in Fig. 57 runs down 

 to, and is connected with, one of the ball-and-socket ocelli. 

 Looking to any one row, for instance B, in Fig. 69, the 

 lowest mark (6) is thicker and considerably longer than the 

 upper spots, and has its left extremity pointed and curved 

 upward. This black mark is abruptly bordered on its upper 

 side by a rather broad space of richly shaded tints, begin- 

 ning with a narrow brown zone, which passes into orange, 

 and this into a pale leaden tint, with the end toward the 

 shaft much paler. These shaded tints together fill up the 

 whole inner space of the elliptic ornament. The mark 

 (ft) corresponds in every respect with the basal shaded 



