The cheek-teeth do not sccm to be subject to much wearing clown. The effect of use 

 appears more conspicuously in the case of the canines and incisors, perhaps as the resuit of 

 fighting. 



The two skins and four skulls brought home by the Belgica from the Antarctic pack-ice 

 are very welcome additions to the meagre list of spécimens of this seal in European Muséums. 



Distinguishing characteristics : - - (a) The skull of Leptonychotes has neither great size 

 nor remarkable teeth to distinguish it at a glance from the remaining seals of the Antarctic 

 Seas. Yet Lobodon, which is very similar in size, is the only seal with which it could possibly 

 be confused. Even there, however, there are several obvious points of différence, and Leptony- 

 chotes (apart from its simple teeth) may be at once distinguished by the proportionately greater 

 breadth of its brain-case and the high narrow facial régions of the skull as well as by its shorter 

 palate. The underjaws of the two animais are also characteristic, that of Lobodon being far 

 deeper, stronger and more massive than that of Leptonychotes. 



(b). Of the skeleton I need say nothing. Both the skull and skeleton hâve been described in 

 détail by Sir William Turner at pages 20 to 28 of his Report on the Seals collected by the 

 « Challenger » Expédition. 



(c). The two skins of this seal are quite différent from those of either Lobodon or Omma- 

 tophoca. The head is far longer and more slender than that of the latter species, and the flippers 

 resemble those of the former in that the hinder pair are very large while the auterior pair are 

 smaller. As in Lobodon I can find no trace of claws on the hinder flippers of the dried skin, but 

 each of the anterior pair is armed with five moderately developed claws. The tail reaches a length 

 of four or five inches. 



The colour the younger spécimen (no. 891) is slatey grey above with the underside, both 

 of body and flippers, dirty white. A fairly distinct line of démarcation runs between the colours 

 of the two surfaces, passing from the base of the hind to that of the fore-flippers and thence to 

 the nose, but including the upper lip in its area. On the flanks are a séries of dirty white 

 spots which, running obliquely forwards, are almost arranged in rows and give an impression 

 that they are discontinous streaks. 



The older spécimen (no. 8g3) is far yellower on the underside, but the greater part of the 

 lower surface is soiled and présents a mixture of various tints of dirty yellow which it would be 

 impossible to classify exactly. On the chest and neck a mixture of dirty yellow and slate grey 

 colouring is arranged in a pattern which resembles marbling, but the underside of the jaw is 

 without spots. 



This seal is sufficiently distinguished by its coloration both from Lobodon and Omma- 



tophoca. 



Habits and Habitat : — Weddell's Seal was found by the Expédition on the pack-ice, 

 where it feeds on the Schizopod crustacean Euphausia. It was also found, with Lobodon, in the 

 strait of de Gerlache, in the Palmer Archipelago. The young are boni on the ice in September. 



Otaria jubata (South American Sea Lion). 



Phoca jabata, Schreber. 



One quite young skull of this Sea Lion was included in the collection. It is described as 

 « no. 902. Jeune mâle (3 mois?). Ile des États, Argentine, 9 Janvier 1898 ». 



