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Frightful was in her nuptial plumage.

He has not yet, moreover, attained the fullest beauty of his nuptial plumage.

Discussion why the males alone of some species, and both sexes of other species, are brightly coloured—On sexually-limited inheritance, as applied to various structures and to brightly-coloured plumage—Nidification in relation to colour—Loss of nuptial plumage during the winter.

In some analogous cases, namely with birds having a distinct summer and winter plumage, but with the two sexes nearly alike, certain closely-allied species can easily be distinguished in their summer or nuptial plumage, yet are undistinguishable in their winter as well as in their immature plumage.

We may admit as probable that the young have retained an ancient state of plumage; we can account through sexual selection for the summer or nuptial plumage of the adults, but how are we to account for their distinct winter plumage?