MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY. 47 



unfrequently marked on the back and sides with irregular-shaped dark 

 brown patches. The sides below the median line are reddish, shading 

 above into the lighter color of the back, and below into the darker color 

 of the lower surface. Lower side of the body dusky reddish-brown, darkest 

 on the hinder portion of the abdomen. Limbs dark reddish-brown, ap- 

 proaching black, especially externally. 



"While the general aspect of the color is as above indicated, the hairs 

 individually greatly vary in color. While some are entirely pale yellow- 

 ish, others are yellowish only at the tip, and dark below, and others are 

 dark reddish-brown or nearly black throughout. The mixture of these 

 two colors gives a brindled appearance on some parts of the body, and to 

 a much greater extent in some specimens than in others. The relative 

 proportion of the light and dark hairs determine the general color of the 

 different regions of the body. 



The color appears to vary much in different individuals, not only with 

 age and sex, but irrespective of sex and age. 



Hair. — The hair is of two kinds, the outer of which is straight, coarse, 

 stiff, and flattened. Beneath this is an exceedingly sparse, very short, 

 finer under-coat, so short and in such small quantity as to be detected only 

 with difficulty. The hair is longest on the anterior half of the body, 

 where it has an average length of 40 mm. ; it decreases in length pos- 

 teriorly, and towards the tail has an average length of only 15 mm. It is 

 still shorter on the abdomen, whilst on the limbs it is much more reduced, 

 and disappears entirely towards the ends of the digits. The end of the 

 nose, the soles and palms, the anal region, and the extra-digital cartilagi- 

 nous flaps are naked and black. The whiskers are long, slender, and cylin- 

 drical, white or brownish-white, and set in four or five rather indistinct 

 rows. Some of the longest sometimes reach a length of 50 cent., or about 

 twenty inches, with a maximum thickness of 2 mm. 



Size. — The length of full-grown males is about twelve or thirteen feet. 

 According to Captain Bryant they frequently reach the latter size, and a 

 weight of from fifteen to eighteen hundred pounds. The females, he ob- 

 serves, are much more slender than the males, and do not attain to more 

 than one fourth the weight of the latter. 



Ears. — The ears (Fig. 8, PI. I) are short and pointed, but much broader 

 than those of the Northern fur seal (Fig. 13, PI. II), though of only half 

 their length. 



Hind Limbs. — The hind feet (Fig. 7, PI. I, -^ nat. size) are broad 

 and, gradually widening from the tarsus, reach their greatest breadth at 

 the end of the toes. Their length is short as compared to their breadth, 

 the distance between the ends of the outer toes when spread nearly equal- 

 ling the whole length of the foot. The toes are terminated with strong 



