# From W. B. Tegetmeier   [before 18 April 1869]1

[1 page missing]

given. The matter was so complicated and irregular that I could not get any one to do it satisfactorily, so I had to set about it myself, and have only been able to give it an hour or two at a time—2

The result is enclosed—Table I

In adding up the tables, I had compiled from each volume of the Field. My son3 who is a good arithmetician observed that the proportion of males and females varied in the 1st and 2nd six months of the year.— (About $\frac{3}{4}$ trs of the animals are bred in the first half of the year and very few in Oct Novr & Decr) so I had the approximate ratios worked out, for the whole year it is nearly 74 males to 68 females—* but as unfortunately some of the provisional slips (from the separate half yearly volumes) were destroyed before my attention was diverted to the difference I can only send you the half yearly list in its imperfect condition. Table II But the missing matter can be compiled again if you wish it.

* Approximative ratios.

Males Females

Whole years. 74 68

1st half of year 74 65

2d half 74 70

You will bear in mind that these tables are compiled from those accounts of “Greyhound Produce” sent to the Field and are only a portion of the dogs kept for public coursing.

Few dogs are bred in the winter so they would run to disadvantage in the puppy stakes of the following season.—

There are some extraordinary instances of hereditary influence over colours in greyhounds—if you like to have them collected—certain celebrated dogs are known never to have produced any puppies but those of one colour, which was not influenced by the colour of the female—etc

I Greyhounds produce 4

Males Females

1857 From Coursing Calendar 504 516

1858 Field Vol.11. 12 245 219

1859 13 14 157 138

1860 15. 16 275 235

1861 17 18 202 207

1862 19 20 312 254

1863 vols. 21. 22 366 316

1864 23 24 265 278

1865 25 26 298 255

1866 27 28 308 279

1867 29 30 378 325

1868 31 32 295 251

3605 3273

II Greyhound produce

Jan to June July to Decr

Males Females Males Females

1857

8 150 114 95 105

9

1860 223 181 52 54

1 153 164 49 43

2 202 175 110 79

3 279 236 87 80

4 211 221 54 57

5 231 197 67 58

6 269 238 39 41

7 330 274 48 51

8

2048 1800 601 568

## CD annotations

1.1 given … time— 1.3] crossed pencil
5.1 Few … season.— 5.2] crossed pencil; ‘stet’ in margin, pencil
6.1 There are … female—etc 6.4] crossed pencil

Table I: cross after ‘516’, pencil; tick after ‘18’, pencil; cross after ‘207’, pencil, two crosses after ‘278’,5 pencil; foot of first column, ‘12 years.’ ink; foot of last two colums,

3273 – 6878

pencil

Foot of table II: ‘Tegetmeier’, pencil

## Footnotes

The year is established by the relationship between this letter and the letter to W. B. Tegetmeier, 18 April [1869].
Egbert Tegetmeier.
CD used the data from this table in Descent 1: 263–4, 304; he credited Tegetmeier for his assistance in ibid., p. 304.
In a separate note at DAR 85: B34, CD calculated the ratios of male to female births for 1864 and 1867 (two of the years marked with pencil crosses); he used these ratios in Descent 1: 265.

## Summary

Numerical proportion of males to females in greyhound puppies.

## Letter details

Letter no.
DCP-LETT-6700
From
William Bernhard Tegetmeier
To
Charles Robert Darwin
Sent from
unstated
Source of text
DAR 85: B29–33
Physical description
Amem 5pp inc