Cl Up. VIII. 
SEXUAL SELECTION. 
307 
b female, or at least as high as 5 to 3. 47 The males of the black- 
bird, he likewise maiutained, were by far the most numerous, whe- 
ther caught by traps or by netting at night. These statements 
1Tl ay apparently be trusted, because the same man said that the 
8e Ses are about equal with the lark, the twite ( Linar ia montana ), 
a nd goldfinch. On the other hand he is certain that with the 
0 °mnion linnet, the females preponderate greatly, but unequally 
'fining different years ; during some years he has found the females 
tu the males as four to one. It should, however, bo borne in mind, 
that the chief season for catching birds does not begin till Sept- 
ember, so that with some species partial migrations may havo begun, 
**>4 the flocks at this period often consist of hens alone. Mr. Salvin 
fluid particular attention to the sexes of the humming-birds in 
bentral America, and he is convinced that with most of the species 
Jbe males are in excess ; thus one year he procured 204 specimens 
belonging to ten species, and these consisted of 100 males and of 
^ females. With two other species the females were in excess : 
but the proportions apparently vary either dining different seasons 
IJr in different localities; for on one occasion the males of Cam- 
tyloptcrus hemileucurus were to the females as five to two, and 
"b another occasion 48 in exactly the reversed ratio. As bearing on 
^bis latter point, 1 may add, that Mr. Powys found in Corfu and 
hpirus the sexes of the chaffinch keeping apart, and “the females 
by far the most numerous;” whilst in Palestine Mr. Tristram 
(( °Und “ the male flocks appearing greatly to exceed the female in 
dumber.” 43 So again with the Quwcalus major, Mr. (1. Taylor™ 
that in Florida there were “ very few females in proportion to 
the males,” whilst in Honduras the proportion was the other way, 
l be species there having the character of a polygamist. 
FISH. 
itli Fish the proportional numbers of the sexes can he ascertained 
ri,lJ y by catching them in the adult or nearly adult state; and there 
. [ Mr, Jenner Weir 
dar 
received similar information, on making enquiries 
l 'mg the following year. To shew the number of chaffinches caught, I 
" a y mention that in 1869 there was a match between two experts ; and 
man caught in a day 62, and another 40, male chaffinches. The greatest 
JJber ever caught by one man in a single day was 70. 
'ibis,’ vol. ii. p. 260, as quoted in Gould's ‘ Trochilidse,’ 1861, p. 52. 
.■ r the foregoing proportions, I am indebted to Mr. Salvin for a table of 
, results. 
49 / T , . 
lo , „ ! s >. *860, p. 137 ; and 1867, p. 369. 
