alternate dark or light bands or spots, such as the zebra, some deer, or the carnivora, we find, first, that the region of the spinal column is marked by a dark stripe; secondly, that the regions of the appendages, or limbs, are differently marked; thirdly, that the flanks are striped or spotted, along or between the regions of the lines of the ribs; fourthly, that the shoulder and hip regions are marked by curved lines; fifthly, that the pattern changes, and the direction of the lines, or spots, at the head, neck, and every joint of the limbs; and lastly, that the tips of the ears, nose, tail, and feet, and the eye are emphasised in colour. In spotted animals the greatest length of the spot is generally in the direction of the largest development of the skeleton."
This structural decoration is well seen in many insects. In caterpillars, similar spots and markings are repeated in each segment, except where modified for some form of protection. In butterflies, the spots and bands usually have reference to the form of the wing and the arrangement of the nervures; and there is much evidence to show that the primitive markings are always spots in the cells, or between the nervures, or at the junctions of nervures, the extension and coalescence of these spots forming borders, bands, or blotches, which have become modified in infinitely varied ways for protection, warning, or recognition. Even in birds, the distribution of colours and markings follows generally the same law. The crown of the head, the throat, the ear-coverts, and the eyes have usually distinct tints in all highly coloured birds; the region of the furcula has often a distinct patch of colour, as have the pectoral muscles, the uropygium or root of the tail, and the under tail-coverts.[1]
Mr. Tylor was of opinion the primitive form of ornamentation consisted of spots, the confluence of these in certain directions forming lines or bands; and, these again, sometimes coalescing into blotches, or into more or less uniform tints covering a large portion of the surface of the body. The young lion and tiger are both spotted; and in the Java hog (Sus vittatus) very young animals are banded, but have spots over the shoulders and thighs. These spots run into stripes
- ↑ Coloration of Animals, Pl. X, p. 90; and Pls. II, III, and IV, pp. 30, 40, 42.
