EXPÉDITION ANTARCTIQUE BELGE 



the flanks by streaks of the colour of the undersurface about a quarter of an inch in breadth which 

 run obliquely fonvard invading that of the uppersurface. Occasionally where thèse streaks are 

 interrupted a spot or two is formed. Otherwise the créature is spotless. 



The only other description of this seal which I hâve read are the few lines devoted to it 

 by (') Mr. W. S. Bruce, who remarks that in size and form it is very like the crab-eating seal, for 

 the young of which indeed he seems at first to hâve confused it. Its coat is, however, « somewhat 

 sleeker, of a beautiful pale mottled grey colour, darker on the back and lighter on the belly, and 

 varying in intensit}' in différent individuals ». I cannot help thinking that possibly Mr. Bruce 

 may hâve been mistaken in his identification of an animal which is desciïbed with such vividness 

 by Monsieur Racovitza as being highly distinct from ail the other species which fréquent the 

 antarctic pack-ice. His words may refer to the young of Lobodon which frequently appears to 

 hâve a mottled appearance. 



The tail has been damaged, but seems to hâve reached a length of about three or four inches. 



The flippers, both fore and hind, are extremely small, and I can find no trace of claws 

 in the skin. If the) 7 were présent on the fore-flippers, they must hâve been quite rudimentary. 

 The head, judging by the appearance of the skull must be extremely thick and pug-dog-like, as 

 indeed is well-shown by Monsieur Racovitza's photograph. The body, in fact, in the words of 



Monsieur Racovitza « n'est plus qu'un sac fusiforme pourvu de membres très réduits C'est 



le plus phoque des phoques, car chez lui toute forme de quadrupède a disparu. » 



Habits and Habitat : — Practically nothing has been previously known of the distribu- 

 tion of Ross' seal. The two original spécimens had no more precisety defined locality attached 

 to them than the vague term « antarctic seas ». judging then by the fact that thèse had for fifty 

 years remained the only known examples of their race in muséums, it could only be surmised that 

 the living animal must be of extremely rare occurence or that its habitat must be highly remote 

 or inaccessible. The Belgian Expédition has now shown us that Ross' seal is an inhabitant of the 

 Antarctic pack-ice, where, however, it would appear to be of comparatively rare occurence, for 

 the members of the expédition met with it only on thirteen occasions. It was not found in the 

 Strait of de Gerlache in the Palmer Archipelago. It feeds exclusively on large cephalopods. 



M. Bruce's, language (if he were not mistaken) does not lead to the belief that he found 

 Ross' seal a rare species. On the contrary, he speaks of Ross' and the crab-eating seals as being 

 « in greatest abundance », on the pack-ice and many of the former were found to be in young. 

 The two species « lay four, five, or even ten on a single pièce of pack-ice; the greatest number 

 I saw on a pièce of ice at a time was forty-seven ». 



One of Monsieur Racovitza's most remarkable observations is connected with the vocal 

 powers of this seal. « Ce Phoque (hewrites) possède une voix très curieuse et les sons qu'il émet 

 sont très variés. C'est un véritable virtuose antarctique. Son larynx fortement gonflé constitue 

 une caisse de résonance et le voile du palais très développé distendu par de l'air, constitue à 

 l'animal une sorte de cornemuse. On entend d'abord, chez la bête irritée, une sorte de roucoule- 

 ment de tourterelle enrouée, auquel succède le gloussement d'une poule affolée de terreur et 

 la finale c'est un reniflement sans harmonie produit par l'air violemment expulsé par les narines ». 



(i) Proceedings oi the Royal Physical Society of Edinburgh, vol. xn, 1892-1894, pp. 35o-354, 1894; also : 

 t oi the Sixty-third Meeting of the British Association for the advancement of Science held at Nottingham 

 '■•' 1 1893, p. 807, 1894. 



