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The Descent of Man

The Descent of Man

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irds, are always seen during the spring in<br />

pairs, and never by themselves; and these <strong>of</strong>fer<br />

at first sight the most perplexing cases. But<br />

birds <strong>of</strong> the same sex, although <strong>of</strong> course not<br />

truly paired, sometimes live in pairs or in small<br />

parties, as is known to be the case with pigeons<br />

and partridges. Birds also sometimes live in<br />

triplets, as has been observed with starlings,<br />

carrion-crows, parrots, and partridges. With<br />

partridges two females have been known to<br />

live with one male, and two males with one<br />

female. In all such cases it is probable that the<br />

union would be easily broken; and one <strong>of</strong> the<br />

three would readily pair with a widow or widower.<br />

<strong>The</strong> males <strong>of</strong> certain birds may occasionally<br />

be heard pouring forth their love-song<br />

long after the proper time, shewing that they<br />

have either lost or never gained a mate. Death<br />

from accident or disease <strong>of</strong> one <strong>of</strong> a pair would<br />

leave the other free and single; and there is reason<br />

to believe that female birds during the<br />

breeding-season are especially liable to prema-

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