104 MAMMALS OF THE PACIFIC WORLD 



gray spot below the eye. The males reach a length of six or 

 seven feet, the females about one foot less. These animals have 

 also been killed in large numbers for their skins. 



Hair Seals, Earless Seals. Family Phocid^ 



The Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina) is found along the shores 

 of both the north Atlantic and north Pacific Oceans. In the 

 north Pacific, it ranges from Oregon northward to the Aleutians 

 and Pribilof Islands, and thence southward on the Asiatic side 

 of the Pacific to Japan. Its color varies from yellowish gray 

 with dark brown spots to blackish with yellow spots. It is about 

 five feet long; the sexes differ little in size. A number of sub- 

 species have been distinguished, chiefly by skull characters. 



The Ribbon Seal {Phoca fasciata), although about the size 

 and build of the harbor seal, is very differently colored. It is 

 dark brown, decorated with strongly contrasting yellowish 

 bands about the neck, shoulders, and rump. This rare seal is 

 found along the coasts of Alaska, the Aleutian Islands, and 

 thence as far southwest as the Kurile Islands. 



The Ringed Seal (Phoca hispida) has also the general shape 

 and size of the harbor seal. The upperparts are blackish brown, 

 covered with rings or blotches of yellowish ; the underparts are 

 yellowish. The distribution of this seal is circumpolar; it is 

 found as far south as Kamchatka and Sakhalin. 



The Bearded Seal (Erignathus barbatus), much larger than 

 the harbor seal, attains a length of ten or twelve feet. It is 

 usually plainly colored, grayish or yellowish, and darker along 

 the back. The occasional individuals which show great varia- 

 tion in color can always be recognized by the tuft of flattened 

 bristles on each side of the muzzle. The bearded seal is circum- 

 polar and' has been found on the Alaskan coast, the Aleutian, 

 and on the northern Asiatic coast as far south as Sakhalin. 



The Leopard Seal {Hydrurga leptonyx) is the best known of 

 the seals of the southern seas. The color is ashy gray above, 

 more or less spotted with black, sometimes with lighter blotches 



