Ɛpsilon

To Lawson Tait   10 September [1875]

Basset. Southampton

Sept. 10th

My dear Sir

I can give you very little information on your subject.1 Earwigs are said, I believe—in Kirby & Spence, to take charge of their young,2 & I am sure that I have read that even Star-fishes do the same for their eggs, as everyone must have read of Spiders—3 I rather think that I have referred to star-fishes in 2d. Edit. of Descent of Man.— Other fish, besides Stickle-backs, take charge of their young; of which I give fresh instances in 2d. Edit. of Descent.—4

Yours sincerely | Ch. Darwin

Postmark: SP 11 75

1
In his letter of 7 September [1875], Tait had asked about parental instinct in various organisms.
2
Kirby and Spence 1828, 1: 360–1. Earwigs are insects of the order Dermaptera.
3
On maternal affection in spiders, see Kirby and Spence 1828, 1: 361–3. CD mentioned parental affection in starfish and spiders in Descent 2d ed., p. 106. Starfish are marine invertebrates of the class Asteroidea.
4
See Descent 2d ed., pp. 106 and 344–6.

Manuscript Alterations and Comments

0.1 Southampton] above del ‘Down, | Beckenham, Kent. | Railway Station | Orpington. S.E.R.’

Please cite as “DCP-LETT-10154,” in Ɛpsilon: The Charles Darwin Collection accessed on 5 June 2025, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/letters/DCP-LETT-10154