REEF ROOKERY. 563 



and several small harems are located in the rear, plainly stolen from the large one. 

 The original bull, however, has still between 90 and 100 cows. 



The two harems noted in 1895 by Mr. Townsend as located just beyond the break 

 at the end of Gorbatch are now represented by a single harem, but at some distance 

 beyond there is another harem with 2 cows. They were not looked for last year, but 

 were doubtless present. This persistence in maintaining even isolated single harems 

 has already been noted. 



It is on Ardignen that the shrinkage of seals is most noticeable. There is to-day 

 a single cow on the surface above the mouth of the slide, and a large harem is 

 wanting in the slide itself. On the 14th of July last year there were 3 harems of 

 7, 24, and 42 cows, respectively, on this flat. The bulls are in their places, but the 

 cows are wanting. The slide itself in the lower part is still occupied much as it was 

 last season. 



REEF. 



The patch under the point of Reef rookery falls farther short of the cross of 

 1895, but what is more noticeable still is its thinness. It is possible to get down 

 to the two piles of rocks which furnish observation between the rookery itself and 

 the hauling ground in the rear. It was impossible to reach these points last year 

 because of the idle bulls. It is not that the idle bulls are absent this year, but they 

 lie below the rock piles, the harems having shrunk away to the edge of the bowlder 

 beach everywhere except in the two large wedge-shaped masses about the ponds. 

 The dried bed of the larger pond is covered to-day with idle bulls. The two great 

 masses which could not be counted even by harems last year can now be easily 

 counted from the rocks in the rear, and for the 100 harems each estimated for these 

 last year there are only 50 harems all told above the bowlder beach. The number 

 on the sand can not exceed this. The masses bid fair to reach nearly the same points 

 as last year, but they are very thin, and the cows are scattered. There is none of 

 the dense massing to be seen last year at this time. We can stand to-day where tl it- 

 little 2-year-old cow was shot last year without disturbing any harems at all. This 

 was the terminal point of the breeding mass last year. 



Although the lieef was driven from this morning there are now a large number 

 of bachelors hauled out. Most of these are seals returned from the killing, whicli 

 has been going on since 6 o'clock this morning. It is now nearly noon. Some of tin- 

 seals, chiefly young 5-year-olds, are dry enough to have been out of the water for ;i 

 week. They have doubtless drawn back from the region of the pond where they 

 could not be reached in the morning by the drivers. 



At the killing this morning from the Reef, Lukanin, and Zoltoi 988 seals were 

 killed; 377 large and 1,174 small seals were turned back. One hundred skins weighed 

 on an average 7.05 pounds each. One 7-year-old bull and 2 bachelors were overcome 

 in one of the pods and died. The weather this season has been very unfavorable, 

 as a rule, for sealing. At each drive one or two seals have fallen by the wayside. 

 The wonder is that the number has not been larger. 



The weight of the young bull which died this morning was found to be 419 

 pounds. He was in good condition, belonging to that class of young bulls which 

 seem, like the bachelors, to go to sea and return, probably feeding more or less 

 regularly. 



The skin of the bull was taken for a museum specimen. 



