THE ZAPADNI DEATH TRAP. 413 



ZAPADNI KOOKEBY. 



The count of Zapadni was made beginning at the north end, just beyond the sand 

 beach. At the very beginning of the rookery there is a level sandy place with only 

 small stones scattered over it. In this patch were found 4 dead cows, 1 dead hair 

 seal, and 135 dead pups. Considering the size of the place, this is a high death rate. 



The next patch, also extremely bad, lies in a sort of gully. It is a regular death 

 trap. There were in it 352 dead pups and 2 dead cows. This is a long concave 

 depression, like the bed of a stream, with a thick mass of seals over its bottom and 

 massed on the low stony hills on either side in the breeding season. On the round 

 stony hill between this mass and the next were found 153 dead pups. 



ZAPADNI GULLY. 



Next comes the so-called Zapadni "gully," the most effective death trap of its 

 size for pups on the island. This is a long winding depression, 1 or 2 rods in width, 

 broadening at intervals and narrowest at the lowest part just before it spreads out 

 into the broad sandy flat which lies above the round bowlders of the beach. All 

 parts of the gully were filled with dead pups, but particularly the part just above the 

 wall of green rocks which bounds it on the south. Very many dead pups were also 

 found on the bowlders at the water's edge. 



In this depression, at the height of the breeding season, much fighting was seen 

 among the bulls, and there is no protection for the pups and nothing to impede the 

 movements of the fighting bulls. Besides this, bands of roving bachelors came down 

 the runway at the upper end of the gully and passed through the harems to the water 

 below. In the breeding season the entrance of a half bull in this gully was the signal 

 for a general fight until he was thrown out at the lower end. The bachelors are 

 tempted to use this runway because it is smoother than the ordinary way over the 

 rocks. The gully and the sandy beach below contained 663 dead pups. 



On the rocks below this gully a cow had just given birth to a pup. She seemed 

 greatly distressed over the disturbance. All the other cows in the harem left her to 

 go in the water. She remained, however, by her pup, as newly made mothers have 

 frequently been seen to do. Those with older pups run aw;iy, leaving them to take 

 care of themselves. Even the young bull in the harem to which the cow belonged 

 has left his post. 



A pup was seen to approach a little pool of rain water and sip it, as though 

 drinking. Whether he really drank any or not was impossible to determine. 



South of this gully is a parapet of rocks covered with green sedge. On the hill 

 behind this there were 35 dead pups. The ground is but scantily covered in the 

 breeding season. 



Very few fresh pups are seen except on the rocks at the water's edge. Some of 

 these are starved, occasionally one apparently drowned. 



Next comes a rocky beach that extends some distance along the shore, having 292 

 dead pups and 1 dead bull. Another broad beach extends back on the sandy ground, 

 but has no runway for bachelors through it. It has 184 dead pups and 1 dead cow. 



Then comes a break in the rookery, which serves as a runway to the hauling 

 ground near its middle. This is followed by a long beach extending backward at 

 intervals in sandy flats and having some bad ground, on which are 290 dead pups, 7 

 dead cows, and 2 dead bulls. 



