From A. R. Wallace 1 May 1867
Summary
Never imagined that the facts about sexual selection could be new to CD. Thought fact that brightly coloured females build concealed nests and almost all those in which sexes differ remarkably build exposed nests might be new to him. Some problems remain. Sends his notes for CD to use if he wants.
| Author: | Alfred Russel Wallace |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 1 May 1867 |
| Classmark: | DAR 84.1: 36–7 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5522 |
To A. R. Wallace 5 May [1867]
Summary
Returns ARW’s notes. He will work up subject much better than CD.
Apologises for the note of illiberality in his letter regarding ARW’s work on the colouring and other sexual differences in mammals.
Discusses laws of inheritance based on sexual selection.
He questions the extent of applicability of principles of protection and sexual selection to lower animal forms, though Ernst Haeckel has shown how protection may account for transparency and absence of colour in lower oceanic animals.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Alfred Russel Wallace |
| Date: | 5 May [1867] |
| Classmark: | The British Library (Add 46434 f. 89) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-5528 |
| Darwin, C. R. | (1) |
| Wallace, A. R. | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (1) |
| Wallace, A. R. | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (2) |
| Wallace, A. R. |
