The Descent of Man

observed with domesticated or confined birds;
but these are often pampered by high feeding,
and sometimes have their instincts vitiated to
an extreme degree. Of this latter fact I could
give sufficient proofs with pigeons, and especially
with fowls, but they cannot be here related.
Vitiated instincts may also account for some
of the hybrid unions above mentioned; but
in many of these cases the birds were allowed
to range freely over large ponds, and there is no
reason to suppose that they were unnaturally
stimulated by high feeding.
With respect to birds in a state of nature, the
first and most obvious supposition which will
occur to every one is that the female at the proper
season accepts the first male whom she
may encounter; but she has at least the opportunity
for exerting a choice, as she is almost
invariably pursued by many males. Audubon—and
we must remember that he spent a
long life in prowling about the forests of the