The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication, vol 2 | Page 7

cases of reversion occur in the vegetable kingdom; thus
"from seeds gathered from the finest cultivated varieties of Heartsease

(Viola tricolor), plants perfectly wild both in their foliage and their
flowers are frequently produced;" (13/7. Loudon's 'Gardener's Mag.'
volume 10 1834 page 396: a nurseryman, with much experience on this
subject, has likewise assured me that this sometimes occurs.) but the
reversion in this instance is not to a very ancient period, for the best
existing varieties of the heartsease are of comparatively modern origin.
With most of our cultivated vegetables there is some tendency to
reversion to what is known to be, or may be presumed to be, their
aboriginal state; and this would be more evident if gardeners did not
generally look over their beds of seedlings, and pull up the false plants
or "rogues" as they are called. It has already been remarked, that some
few seedling apples and pears generally resemble, but apparently are
not identical with, the wild trees from which they are descended. In our
turnip (13/8. 'Gardener's Chronicle' 1855 page 777.) and carrot-beds a
few plants often "break "--that is, flower too soon; and their roots are
generally hard and stringy, as in the parent-species. By the aid of a little
selection, carried on during a few generations, most of our cultivated
plants could probably be brought back, without any great change in
their conditions of life, to a wild or nearly wild condition: Mr.
Buckman has effected this with the parsnip (13/9. Ibid 1862 page 721.);
and Mr. Hewett C. Watson, as he informs me, selected, during three
generations, "the most diverging plants of Scotch kail, perhaps one of
the least modified varieties of the cabbage; and in the third generation
some of the plants came very close to the forms now established in
England about old castle-walls, and called indigenous."
REVERSION IN ANIMALS AND PLANTS WHICH HAVE RUN
WILD.
In the cases hitherto considered, the reverting animals and plants have
not been exposed to any great or abrupt change in their conditions of
life which could have induced this tendency; but it is very different
with animals and plants which have become feral or run wild. It has
been repeatedly asserted in the most positive manner by various authors,
that feral animals and plants invariably return to their primitive specific
type. It is curious on what little evidence this belief rests. Many of our
domesticated animals could not subsist in a wild state; thus, the more

highly improved breeds of the pigeon will not "field" or search for their
own food. Sheep have never become feral, and would be destroyed by
almost every beast of prey. (13/10. Mr. Boner speaks
('Chamois-hunting' 2nd edition 1860 page 92) of sheep often running
wild in the Bavarian Alps; but, on making further inquiries at my
request, he found that they are not able to establish themselves; they
generally perish from the frozen snow clinging to their wool, and they
have lost the skill necessary to pass over steep icy slopes. On one
occasion two ewes survived the winter, but their lambs perished.) In
several cases we do not know the aboriginal parent- species, and cannot
possibly tell whether or not there has been any close degree of
reversion. It is not known in any instance what variety was first turned
out; several varieties have probably in some cases run wild, and their
crossing alone would tend to obliterate their proper character. Our
domesticated animals and plants, when they run wild, must always be
exposed to new conditions of life, for, as Mr. Wallace (13/11. See some
excellent remarks on this subject by Mr. Wallace 'Journal Proc. Linn.
Soc.' 1858 volume 3 page 60.) has well remarked, they have to obtain
their own food, and are exposed to competition with the native
productions. Under these circumstances, if our domesticated animals
did not undergo change of some kind, the result would be quite
opposed to the conclusions arrived at in this work. Nevertheless, I do
not doubt that the simple fact of animals and plants becoming feral,
does cause some tendency to reversion to the primitive state; though
this tendency has been much exaggerated by some authors.
[I will briefly run through the recorded cases. With neither horses nor
cattle is the primitive stock known; and it has been shown in former
chapters that they have assumed different colours in different countries.
Thus the horses which have run wild in South America are generally
brownish-bay, and in the East dun-coloured; their heads have become
larger and coarser, and this may be due to reversion. No careful
description has been given of the feral goat. Dogs which have run wild
in various countries have hardly anywhere assumed a uniform character;
but they are probably descended from several domestic races,