TOE HOODED SEAL: DISTRIBUTION. 69 



other pelagic species, stragglers are sometimes met with tar to the southward of the usual nme. 

 of the species. On the North Americau coast it appears to lie of uueonmxm occurrence .south of the 

 point already mentioned, ;is it is --aid by Gilpiu 1 to be "a rare visitor to the shores of Nova Scotia." 

 Like the Harp Seal, it appears also to be regularly migratory, but owing to its much smaller numbers 

 and less commercial importance, its movments are not so well known. Carroll states that it visits 

 the coast of Newfoundland at the same time as the Harp Seal, or about the 25th of February, the 

 time, however, varying with the state of the weather, lie further states that Hooded Seals always 

 keep to the eastward of the ILirp Seals, amongst the heavy ice ; also that they are quite numerous 

 in spring in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, where "many of them are killed by persons who reside 

 on Saint Paul's Island."- Dr. Packard states that it " is not uncommonly, during the spring, killed 

 in considerable numbers by the sealers" along the coast of Labrador. 3 Kink says. " It is only o;-ca 

 Monally found along the greater part of the, coast [of Greenland], but visits the very limited trad 

 between 00 and 01 N. hit., in great numbers, most probably in coming from and returning to the 

 east side of Greenland. The first time it visits us is from about May 20 till the cud of .June, dur- 

 ing which it yields a very luciative catch. 7 ' 4 Robert Brown observes, " With regard to the favorite 

 localities of this species ol Seal, C'ranz and the much more accurate Fabric-ins disagree the former 

 afiirming that they are found mostly on great ice islands where they sleep in an unguarded manner, 

 while the latter states that they delight in the high seas, visiting the land in April, May, and June. 

 This appears contradictory and confusing; but in reality both authors are right, though not in an 

 exclusive sense.'' Again he says: '-This Seal is not common anywhere. On the shores of Green- 

 land" it is chiefly found beside large fields of ice, and comes to the coast, as was remarked by Fabri- 

 cius long ago, at certain times of Ihe year. They are chiefly found in South Greenland, 1 hough it is 

 erroneous to say that they are exclusively confined to that section. I have seen them not uncom- 

 monly about Disco Bay, and have killed them in MeKille Bay, in the most northerly portion of 

 Baffin's Bay. They are principally killed in the district of Jnlianshaab, and then almost solely in 

 the most southern part, on the outermost islands, from about the 2<)th of May to the last of .June; 

 but in' this short time they supply a great portion ot ihe food of the natives and form a thhd of 

 the colony's yearly production. In the beginning of July the Klapmyds leaves, but ivtnr..s in 

 August, when it is much emaciated. Then begins what the Danes in Greenland call the in 1 <!>< 

 Klapmydse fangxt, or the 'lean-Klapmyds-catching,' which lasts from three to four weeks. Very 

 seldom is a Klapmyds to be got at other places, and especially at other times. The- natives 

 Klupmyds found single up a fjord by the name of Nerimartont, the meaning of which is gone 

 after food. 1 They regularly frequent some small islands not far from Jnlianshaab, where a gon.l 

 number are caught. After this they go farther north, but are lost sight of, and it is not known 

 where they go to (Rink, I. c.). Those seen in North Greenland an- mere si rug 'lers, wandering from 

 the herd, and are not a continuation of the migrating lloclcs. Johannes (a very knowing man of 

 Jnkobshavn) informed me that generally about the 12th of July a few aie killed in Jakohshax n 

 Bay (hit. 09 lo' N.). It is more pelagic iii its habits than the other Seals, with the exception of 

 the Saddle'.iack." 5 



1 conclude the account of the geographical distribution ot'the llooded Seal in Baflin's I '.ay 

 with the following from Mr. Kmnlien's account : 



1 ProriTi lilies :inl Traiisatimis .Nova Srntian Institute of Natural Sciences, vol. iii, pk 4, p. bd4. 



-Seal ami HCTIUIL; KUln-rirs of NYwiiuimllauil, j>p. 13, 14. 



'Proc. Bust Soi-.Nal. Hist., vol. x, p. a71. 



"Danifili Greenland, etc., 1877, p 1-Jci. 



6 Proe. Zocil. Soc. Loud., ItiiM. |>p 4::ii. 4:i; : Man. Xat. Hist., etc., Greenland, Mam., \>\>. 65, 66. 



