158 



HARD WICKE 'S S CIENCE- G OS SIP. 



Doubts having been thrown on the accuracy of this 

 decision, Professor Bell, in the second edition of his 

 "British Quadrupeds," p. 253, again states his belief 

 that he was correct in assigning the skulls to the young 

 of this species. These skulls are unfortunately lost. 

 Several supposed cases of the occurrence of this species 

 are recorded, but in no instance were they supported 

 by the production of the animal itself. Dr. Saxby 

 (" Zool.," 1864) says that this species is not rare in bad 

 weather in the Voe of Baltasound, Shetland ; and Mr. 

 H. Evans, of Darnley Abbey, Derbyshire, in the year 

 1856, shot what he believes to have been a Greenland 

 Seal near Roundstone, county Galway, — " Unfortu- 

 nately, the animal sank and was lost ; but Mr. Evans, 

 who is well acquainted with the common and grey 

 species, is perfectly certain that it was quite different 

 from either" (Bell, 2 edit., p. 254). Perhaps the 

 best-authenticated case of the supposed occurrence of 

 this species on our shores is given by Mr. H. D. 

 Graham in Part I., vol. i. of the "Proceedings of 

 the Nat. Hist. Society of Glasgow," p. 53 (Feb. 24, 

 1863). Three large white seals were seen by Mr. 

 Graham in Loch Tabert, Jura, Western Isles, lying 

 on some shelving rocks, about 300 or 400 yards from 

 the shore. They were watched through an excellent 

 deer-stalking telescope for three hours, and Mr. 

 Graham states that the chai'acteristic markings of the 

 Harp Seal could be distinctly seen. He also believes 

 that, in three authentic instances, captures of white 

 seals, of extraordinary size, had been made, and states 

 some particulars of the habits and appearance of 

 these animals, as communicated to him by the 

 islanders — to whom they appear to have been well 

 known, — which render it highly probable that they 

 belonged to this species. Although essentially an 

 Arctic species, this animal has a very wide geo- 

 graphical range, which, added to its migratory habits, 

 renders it not at all improbable that individuals occa- 

 sionally wander to our shores. It is a native of the 

 Arctic Ocean, and ranges from the N.E. coast of 

 America to the Kara Sea (where it was found by the 

 Swedish Arctic Expedition in 1875), changing its 

 quarters according to season.* It is this species 

 which constitutes the chief object of pursuit in the 

 northern seal fishery, and the season chosen for the 

 attack is when they visit the ice for the purpose of 

 producing'their young ones. Dr. Brown says, "They 

 take to the ice, to bring forth their young, generally 

 between the middle of March and the middle of 

 April, according to the state of the season, &c., the 

 most common time being about the end of March. 

 At this time they can be seen literally covering the 

 frozen waste, with the aid of a telescope, from the 

 'crow's-nest,' at the main royal mast-head, and have 

 on such occasions been calculated to number upwards 



* Ph. screen la ndka was the only seal met with by the Aus- 

 trian Arctic Expedition, in the Tcgcthoff in August, 1873, 

 the ship then drifting in the ice in !at. 79° 31', long. 61° 43'. 

 Subsequently, both this species and Ph. barbata were met with 

 about North lat. 81°. 



of half a million'of males and females."* The young, 

 when born, are pure white, M'hich changes to a yellow 

 tint. At about 14 days old they begin to take to the 

 water, and at the age of a month are capable of 

 taking care of themselves : they then assume a spotted 

 coat, which changes gradually to the adult markings, 

 which are perfected in about three years. The adult 

 male is about five feet long, the body generally of a 

 tawny grey, varying to nearly white, marked with a 

 conspicuous band of dark brown or black spots 

 running into each othei-, which, commencing on the 

 upper part of the back between the shoulders and 

 curving downwards, is continued along the sides, 

 disappearing before it reaches the hind flippers. The 

 under parts are a dingy white, and the muzzle nearly 

 black. The female, according to Dr. Brown, rarely 

 reaches five feet in length, and is a dull white or yel- 

 lowish straw-colour, tawny on the back, and with 

 similar markings to the male, but somewhat lighter. 

 Some are bluish or dark grey on the back, with "oval 

 markings of a dark colour apparently impressed on a 

 yellowish or reddish-brown ground " : these. Dr. 

 Brown believes to be young females. The adult 

 Greenland Seal is readily recognized, but it varies so 

 greatly in its different stages, and individuals differ 

 so much from each other, that the most reliable 

 charactei-s are to be found in the dentition and the 

 structure of the skull, which should in all cases be 

 preserved, as affording the most ready and reliable 

 means of determining the species of doubtful indi- 

 viduals. As has been before said, the second toe of 

 the fore flipper is the longest in this species. 



HOW TO CLEAN FOSSIL POLYZOA. 



IN the June number your correspondent " G. A. L.," 

 in a note, "How to clean Fossil Polyzoa," 

 has called the attention of your readers to a method 

 I have adopted for exposing the poriferous face of 

 fronds of polyzoa that may be adhering by that face 

 to the stone. Perhaps you will allow me space to 

 explain the modus operandi to your readers more fully 

 than he has done ? In the first place, I may state, 

 that it is only those specimens of polyzoa imbedded 

 in shales that yield readily to the disintegrating in- 

 fluence of the weather, which can be treated success- 

 fully by the asphalt process. Very little can be done 

 by this method with specimens imbedded in hard 

 calcareous shales or limestones. After selecting the 

 specimens of polyzoa that are to be operated upon, it 

 is best to let them be well dried at a fire, or in the 

 sun's rays for a few days, to get quit of the moisture, 

 before applying the layer of melted asphalt to the 

 surface of the fronds, as I find, by so doing, the 

 asphalt adheres more firmly than when the specimens 

 are damp. I also heat the specimens for a short time 



* " Seals of Greenland." Reprinted in "Manual and In- 

 structions for the Arctic Expedition, 1875," p. 47. 



