The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication — Volume 2. Darwin Charles

Games, Hamburghs, etc. With plants a difference in the period of flowering serves to keep varieties distinct, as with the various kinds of maize and wheat: thus Colonel Le Couteur (16/3. On 'The Varieties of Wheat' page 66.) remarks, "the Talavera wheat, from flowering much earlier than any other kind, is sure to continue pure." In different parts of the Falkland Islands the cattle are breaking up into herds of different colours; and those on the higher ground, which are generally white, usually breed, as I am informed by Sir J. Sulivan, three months earlier than those on the lowland; and this would manifestly tend to keep the herds from blending.

      Certain domestic races seem to prefer breeding with their own kind; and this is a fact of some importance, for it is a step towards that instinctive feeling which helps to keep closely allied species in a state of nature distinct. We have now abundant evidence that, if it were not for this feeling, many more hybrids would be naturally produced than in this case. We have seen in the first chapter that the alco dog of Mexico dislikes dogs of other breeds; and the hairless dog of Paraguay mixes less readily with the European races, than the latter do with each other. In Germany the female Spitz-dog is said to receive the fox more readily than will other dogs; a female Australian Dingo in England attracted the wild male foxes. But these differences in the sexual instinct and attractive power of the various breeds may be wholly due to their descent from distinct species. In Paraguay the horses have much freedom, and an excellent observer (16/4. Rengger 'Saugethiere von Paraguay' s. 336.) believes that the native horses of the same colour and size prefer associating with each other, and that the horses which have been imported from Entre Rios and Banda Oriental into Paraguay likewise prefer associating together. In Circassia six sub-races of the horse have received distinct names; and a native proprietor of rank (16/5. See a memoir by MM. Lherbette and De Quatrefages in 'Bull. Soc. d'Acclimat.' tome 8 July 1861 page 312.) asserts that horses of three of these races, whilst living a free life, almost always refuse to mingle and cross, and will even attack one another.

      It has been observed, in a district stocked with heavy Lincolnshire and light Norfolk sheep, that both kinds; though bred together, when turned out, "in a short time separate to a sheep;" the Lincolnshires drawing off to the rich soil, and the Norfolks to their own dry light soil; and as long as there is plenty of grass, "the two breeds keep themselves as distinct as rooks and pigeons." In this case different habits of life tend to keep the races distinct. On one of the Faroe islands, not more than half a mile in diameter, the half-wild native black sheep are said not to have readily mixed with the imported white sheep. It is a more curious fact that the semi-monstrous ancon sheep of modern origin "have been observed to keep together, separating themselves from the rest of the flock, when put into enclosures with other sheep." (16/6. For the Norfolk sheep see Marshall 'Rural Economy of Norfolk' volume 2 page 136. See Rev. L. Landt 'Description of Faroe' page 66. For the ancon sheep see 'Phil. Transact.' 1813 page 90.) With respect to fallow-deer, which live in a semi-domesticated condition, Mr. Bennett (16/7. White 'Nat. Hist. of Selbourne' edited by Bennett page 39. With respect to the origin of the dark-coloured deer see 'Some Account of English Deer Parks' by E.P. Shirley, Esq.) states that the dark and pale coloured herds, which have long been kept together in the Forest of Dean, in High Meadow Woods, and in the New Forest, have never been known to mingle: the dark-coloured deer, it may be added, are believed to have been first brought by James I. from Norway, on account of their greater hardiness. I imported from the island of Porto Santo two of the feral rabbits, which differ, as described in the fourth chapter, from common rabbits; both proved to be males, and, though they lived during some years in the Zoological Gardens, the superintendent, Mr. Bartlett, in vain endeavoured to make them breed with various tame kinds; but whether this refusal to breed was due to any change in the instinct, or simply to their extreme wildness, or whether confinement had rendered them sterile, as often occurs, cannot be determined.

      Whilst matching for the sake of experiment many of the most distinct breeds of pigeons, it frequently appeared to me that the birds, though faithful to their marriage vow, retained some desire after their own kind. Accordingly I asked Mr. Wicking, who has kept a larger stock of various breeds together than any man in England, whether he thought that they would prefer pairing with their own kind, supposing that there were males and females enough of each; and he without hesitation answered that he was convinced that this was the case. It has often been noticed that the dovecote pigeon seems to have an actual aversion towards the several fancy breeds (16/8. 'The Dovecote' by the Rev. E.S. Dixon page 155; Bechstein 'Naturgesch. Deutschlands' b. 4 1795 page 17.) yet all have certainly sprung from a common progenitor. The Rev. W.D. Fox informs me that his flocks of white and common Chinese geese kept distinct.

      These facts and statements, though some of them are incapable of proof, resting only on the opinion of experienced observers, show that some domestic races are led by different habits of life to keep to a certain extent separate, and that others prefer coupling with their own kind, in the same manner as species in a state of nature, though in a much less degree.

      [With respect to sterility from the crossing of domestic races, I know of no well-ascertained case with animals. This fact, seeing the great difference in structure between some breeds of pigeons, fowls, pigs, dogs, etc., is extraordinary, in contrast with the sterility of many closely allied natural species when crossed; but we shall hereafter attempt to show that it is not so extraordinary as it at first appears. And it may be well here to recall to mind that the amount of external difference between two species is not a safe guide for predicting whether or not they will breed together, — some closely allied species when crossed being utterly sterile, and others which are extremely unlike being moderately fertile. I have said that no case of sterility in crossed races rests on satisfactory evidence; but here is one which at first seems trustworthy. Mr. Youatt (16/9. 'Cattle' page 202.) and a better authority cannot be quoted, states, that formerly in Lancashire crosses were frequently made between longhorn and shorthorn cattle; the first cross was excellent, but the produce was uncertain; in the third or fourth generation the cows were bad milkers; "in addition to which, there was much uncertainty whether the cows would conceive; and full one-third of the cows among some of these half-breds failed to be in calf." This at first seems a good case: but Mr. Wilkinson states (16/10. Mr. J. Wilkinson in 'Remarks addressed to Sir J. Sebright' 1820 page 38.), that a breed derived from this same cross was actually established in another part of England; and if it had failed in fertility, the fact would surely have been noticed. Moreover, supposing that Mr. Youatt had proved his case, it might be argued that the sterility was wholly due to the two parent-breeds being descended from primordially distinct species.

      In the case of plants Gartner states that he fertilised thirteen heads (and subsequently nine others) on a dwarf maize bearing yellow seed (16/11. 'Bastarderzeugung' s. 87, 169. See also the Table at the end of volume.) with pollen of a tall maize having red seed; and one head alone produced good seed, but only five in number. Though these plants are monoecious, and therefore do not require castration, yet I should have suspected some accident in the manipulation, had not Gartner expressly stated that he had during many years grown these two varieties together, and they did not spontaneously cross; and this, considering that the plants are monoecious and abound with pollen, and are well known generally to cross freely, seems explicable only on the belief that these two varieties are in some degree mutually infertile. The hybrid plants raised from the above five seeds were intermediate in structure, extremely variable, and perfectly fertile. (16/12. 'Bastarderzeugung' s. 87, 577.) In like manner Prof. Hildebrand (16/13. 'Bot. Zeitung' 1868 page 327.) could not succeed in fertilising the female flowers of a plant bearing brown grains with pollen from a certain kind bearing yellow grains; although other flowers on the same plant, which were fertilised with their own pollen, yielded good seed. No one, I believe, even suspects that these varieties of maize are distinct species; but had the hybrids been in the least sterile, no doubt Gartner would at once have so classed them. I may here remark, that with undoubted species there is not necessarily any close relation between the sterility of a first cross and that of the hybrid offspring. Some species can be crossed with facility, but produce utterly sterile hybrids; others can be crossed with extreme difficulty, but the hybrids when produced are moderately fertile. I am not aware, however, of any instance quite like this of the maize, namely, of a first cross made with difficulty, but yielding perfectly fertile hybrids. (16/14. Mr. Shirreff formerly thought ('Gardener's Chronicle' 1858 page 771) that the offspring from a cross between certain varieties of wheat became sterile in the fourth generation;