WCP4205

[1]

Parkstone, Dorset.

March 10th. 1890 1¹

Dear Mr. Cockerell²

I wrote to Mr. Seebohm³ near a month ^{(or more)} ago asking him about Garrulus Lidthi which I had in my first Ed. as a peculiar Japanese sp. on authority of (Ibis 1873. p. 478) & which he passed as correct.

Now he omits it altogether in his book, & has given me no reply as to why. Next time you are in the B. Mus. will you ask Sharpe⁴ about this. Also please enquire if there are any new birds or mammals from Formosa, since Swinhoe’s⁵ lists.

[2] Perhaps you will also enquire of Sharpe whether any have been described from Madagascar since 1880. I expect there are very few if any.

Your theory to account for the influence of a first male on progeny by a second seems very probable — and in fact if as I suppose spermatozoa often enter ova without producing ^complete fertilisation, it must be so. That would be easily experimented on, by with fowls, dogs, &c. [3] but I do not remember the fact having been observed except with horses. It ought to be common, when females have young by successive males.

Yours very truly | Alfred R. Wallace [signature]