Contributions to the Theory of Natural Selection: A Series of EssaysMacmillan and Company, 1870 - 384 pages |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 84
Page x
... less variable char- acters in relation to nidification . 248 On males choosing or rejecting females , and on the various modes in which colour may be acquired by female birds . PAGE 249 On probable ancestral colours of female birds . X ...
... less variable char- acters in relation to nidification . 248 On males choosing or rejecting females , and on the various modes in which colour may be acquired by female birds . PAGE 249 On probable ancestral colours of female birds . X ...
Page xiv
... less Forests Pp . 201-210 · VI . - The Philosophy of Birds ' Nests . Instinct or Reason in the Construction of Birds ' Nests - Do Men build by Reason or by Imitation ? —Why does each Bird build a peculiar kind of Nest ? -- How do young ...
... less Forests Pp . 201-210 · VI . - The Philosophy of Birds ' Nests . Instinct or Reason in the Construction of Birds ' Nests - Do Men build by Reason or by Imitation ? —Why does each Bird build a peculiar kind of Nest ? -- How do young ...
Page 2
... less continuous , but unequal in their progress , and during the whole series the organic life of the earth has undergone a corresponding alteration . This alteration also has been gradual , but complete ; after a certain interval not a ...
... less continuous , but unequal in their progress , and during the whole series the organic life of the earth has undergone a corresponding alteration . This alteration also has been gradual , but complete ; after a certain interval not a ...
Page 16
... less numerous in species , and more or less varied in form and structure than either of those which preceded it . Again , each of these groups may not have become totally extinct , but may have left a few species , the modified ...
... less numerous in species , and more or less varied in form and structure than either of those which preceded it . Again , each of these groups may not have become totally extinct , but may have left a few species , the modified ...
Page 18
... less probable that a change in the physical conditions of a district , even small in amount if rapid , or even gradual if to a great amount , would be highly unfavourable to the existence of individuals , might cause the extinction of ...
... less probable that a change in the physical conditions of a district , even small in amount if rapid , or even gradual if to a great amount , would be highly unfavourable to the existence of individuals , might cause the extinction of ...
Other editions - View all
Contributions to the Theory of Natural Selection: A Series of Essays ... Alfred Russel Wallace No preview available - 2018 |
Contributions to the Theory of Natural Selection: A Series of Essays Alfred Russel Wallace No preview available - 2016 |
Common terms and phrases
abundant action adapted affinity animals antennæ antitypes appear beautiful become beetles birds Borneo brain brilliant build butterflies carnivora caterpillars causes Celebes changes character closely allied species colour concealed consider conspicuous curious Danaidæ Darwin Diphilus distinct earth eggs epoch evidence exactly existence explained extinct facts faculties favourable female birds flowers genera genus geological geological periods groups habits Heliconidæ imitation increase India individuals inhabiting insects instinct islands Java larvæ Lepidoptera less Malayan male mimic mimicry mode modified Moluccas moths natural selection nectary nest never nidification number of species observations occur organic world Origin of Species Ormenus Pammon Papilio Papilio Ulysses Papilionidæ peculiar period phenomena Polydorus possess present probably produced protection race regions remarkable render resemble result savage sexes sexual sexual selection shown structure Sumatra supposed tail theory of natural Theseus tints tion trees tropical variation varied varieties whole wings
Popular passages
Page 361 - Were our minds and senses so expanded, strengthened, and illuminated, as to enable us to see and feel the very molecules of the brain ; were we capable of following all their motions, all their groupings, all their...
Page 325 - ... to capture or overcome both. Though less capable than most other animals of living on the herbs and the fruits that unaided nature supplies, this wonderful faculty taught him to govern and direct nature to his own benefit, and make her produce food for him, when and where he pleased. From...
Page 368 - God of the Granite and the Rose! Soul of the Sparrow and the Bee! The mighty tide of Being flows Through countless channels, Lord, from thee. It leaps to life in grass and flowers, Through every grade of being runs, Till from Creation's radiant towers Its glory flames in stars and suns.
Page 38 - ... to high numbers, the results come nearer to what theory demands, and, as we approach to an infinity of examples, become strictly accurate. Now the scale on which nature works is so vast— the numbers of individuals and...
Page 26 - One of the strongest arguments which have been adduced to prove the original and permanent distinctness of species is, that varieties produced in a state of domesticity are more or less unstable, and often have a tendency, if left to themselves, to return to the normal form of the parent species; and this instability is considered to be a distinctive peculiarity of all varieties, even of those occurring among wild animals in a state of nature, and to constitute a provision for preserving unchanged...
Page 41 - ... but the view here developed renders such an hypothesis quite unnecessary, by showing that similar results must be produced by the action of principles constantly at work in nature.
Page 39 - ... dangers, in procuring shelter from the inclemency of the seasons, and in providing for the subsistence and safety of its offspring. There is no muscle of its body that is not called into daily and hourly activity ; there is no sense or faculty that is not strengthened by continual exercise. The domestic animal, on the other hand, has food provided for it, is sheltered, and often confined, to guard it against the vicissitudes of the seasons, is carefully secured from the attacks of its natural...
Page 343 - ... prepared in advance, only to be fully utilized as he progresses in civilization. A brain slightly larger than that of the gorilla would, according to the evidence before us, fully have sufficed for the limited mental development of the savage ; and we must therefore admit, that the large brain he actually possesses could never have been solely develope.d by any of those laws of evolution, whose essence is, that they lead to a degree of organization exactly proportionate to the wants of each species,...
Page 336 - And assuredly, there is no mark of degradation about any part of its structure. It is, in fact, a fair average human skull, which might have belonged to a philosopher, or might have contained the thoughtless brains of a savage.
Page iv - Far abler men than myself may confess that they have not that untiring patience in accumulating, and that wonderful skill in using, large masses of facts of the most varied kind...