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Origin of Bright Colouring in Animals

Abstract

THE origin of the bright colouring of flowers, through natural selection effected by insects, appears to me one of the strongest points of the Darwinian theory. But I think the origin of the bright colouring of many animals, especially birds and insects, is on the contrary one of the greatest of its difficulties. Darwin accounts for it in most cases by sexual selection—the most beautiful males being the best able to obtain mates and to leave offspring.

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MURPHY, J. Origin of Bright Colouring in Animals . Nature 11, 148–149 (1874). https://doi.org/10.1038/011148b0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/011148b0

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