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The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication
- Language
- EN
- Format
- EPUB
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- 5.8 MB
Description
Published in 1868, Charles Darwin's "The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication" is a comprehensive two-volume study examining the effects of human-controlled breeding on a wide range of species. The work synthesises thirteen years of breeding experiments and correspondence, providing detailed observations on domesticated animals such as pigeons and an array of cultivated plants. Darwin investigates the morphological differences among breeds, the inheritance of traits, and the influence of selective breeding practices. The volume incorporates his theory of pangenesis, a proposed mechanism of heredity, which aimed to explain how traits are passed from one generation to the next.
The book contributes to the understanding of biological variation and inheritance, serving as a significant supplement to Darwin's earlier works on natural selection. It discusses phenomena such as reversion to ancestral forms and the fertility of crossbred varieties, illustrating the underlying principles of domestication and heredity in both animals and plants. The text reflects Darwin's meticulous empirical approach and his attempt to outline the mechanisms driving variation in domesticated species.
The book contributes to the understanding of biological variation and inheritance, serving as a significant supplement to Darwin's earlier works on natural selection. It discusses phenomena such as reversion to ancestral forms and the fertility of crossbred varieties, illustrating the underlying principles of domestication and heredity in both animals and plants. The text reflects Darwin's meticulous empirical approach and his attempt to outline the mechanisms driving variation in domesticated species.
From the opening pages
CHARACTERS: SKULL, LOWER JAW, NUMBER OF vertebræ—CORRELATION OF GROWTH: TONGUE WITH BEAK; EYELIDS AND NOSTRILS WITH WATTLED SKIN—NUMBER OF WING-FEATHERS, AND LENGTH OF WING—COLOUR AND DOWN—WEBBED AND FEATHERED FEET—ON THE EFFECTS OF DISUSE—LENGTH OF FEET IN CORRELATION WITH LENGTH OF BEAK—LENGTH OF STERNUM, SCAPULA, AND FURCULUM—LENGTH OF WINGS—SUMMARY ON THE POINTS OF DIFFERENCE IN THE SEVERAL BREEDS. ON THE ABORIGINAL PARENT-STOCK OF THE SEVERAL DOMESTIC RACES—HABITS OF LIFE—WILD RACES OF THE ROCK-PIGEON—Dovecot-PIGEONS—PROOFS OF THE DESCENT OF THE SEVERAL RACES FROM COLUMBA LIVIA—FERTILITY OF THE RACES WHEN CROSSED—REVERSION TO THE PLUMAGE OF THE WILD ROCK-PIGEON—CIRCUMSTANCES FAVOURABLE TO THE FORMATION OF THE RACES—ANTIQUITY AND HISTORY OF THE PRINCIPAL RACES—MANNER OF THEIR FORMATION—SELECTION—UNCONSCIOUS SELECTION—CARE TAKEN BY FANCIERS IN SELECTING THEIR BIRDS—SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT STRAINS GRADUALLY CHANGE INTO WELL-MARKED BREEDS—EXTINCTION OF INTERMEDIATE FORMS—CERTAIN BREEDS REMAIN PERMANENT, WHILST OTHERS CHANGE—SUMMARY. BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE CHIEF BREEDS—ARGUMENTS IN FAVOUR OF THEIR DESCENT FROM SEVERAL SPECIES—ARGUMENTS IN FAVOUR OF ALL THE BREEDS HAVING DESCENDED FROM GALLUS BANKIVA—REVERSION TO THE PARENT-STOCK IN COLOUR—ANALOGOUS VARIATIONS—ANCIENT HISTORY OF THE FOWL—EXTERNAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE SEVERAL BREEDS—EGGS—CHICKENS—SECONDARY SEXUAL CHARACTERS—WING-AND TAIL-FEATHERS, VOICE, DISPOSITION, ETC—OSTEOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES IN THE SKULL, VERTEBRÆ, ETC—EFFECTS OF USE AND DISUSE ON CERTAIN PARTS—CORRELATION OF GROWTH. CHAPTER VIII.—DUCK—GOOSE—PEACOCK—TURKEY—GUINEA-FOWL—CANARY-BIRD—GOLD-FISH—RIVER-BEES—SILK-MOTHS. DUCKS, SEVERAL BREEDS OF—PROGRESS OF DOMESTICATION—ORIGIN OF FROM THE COMMON WILD-DUCK—DIFFERENCES IN THE DIFFERENT BREEDS—OSTEOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES—EFFECTS OF USE AND DISUSE ON THE LIMB-BONES. GOOSE, ANCIENTLY DOMESTICATED—LITTLE VARIATION OF—SEBASTOPOL BREED. PEACOCK, ORIGIN OF BLACK-SHOULDERED BREED. TURKEY, BREEDS OF—CROSSED WITH THE UNITED STATES SPECIES—EFFECTS OF CLIMATE ON. GUINEA-FOWL, CANARY-BIRD, GOLD-FISH, HIVE-BEES. SILK-MOTHS, SPECIES AND BREEDS OF—ANCIENTLY DOMESTICATED—CARE IN THEIR SELECTION—DIFFERENCES IN THE DIFFERENT RACES—IN THE EGG, CATERPILLAR, AND COCOON STATES—INHERITANCE OF CHARACTERS—IMPERFECT WINGS—LOST INSTINCTS—CORRELATED CHARACTERS. CHAPTER IX.—CULTIVATED PLANTS: CEREAL AND CULINARY PLANTS. PRELIMINARY REMARKS ON THE NUMBER AND PARENTAGE OF CULTIVATED PLANTS—FIRST STEPS IN CULTIVATION—GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF CULTIVATED PLANTS. CEREALIA. DOUBTS ON THE NUMBER OF SPECIES— WHEAT: VARIETIES OF—INDIVIDUAL VARIABILITY—CHANGED HABITS—SELECTION—ANCIENT HISTORY OF THE VARIETIES— MAIZE: GREAT VARIATION OF—DIRECT ACTION OF CLIMATE ON. CULINARY PLANTS. — CABBAGES: VARIETIES OF, IN FOLIAGE AND STEMS, BUT NOT IN OTHER PARTS—PARENTAGE OF—OTHER SPECIES OF
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