98 BULLETIN OF THE 



all unnecessary noises avoided. These scouts then depart and in a few 

 days after small numbers of male seals of all ages begin to arrive. The 

 old patriarchs soon take their places on the rookeries and prevent the 

 younger males from landing. They thus compel them to either stay in 

 the water or go to the upland above. 



In locating, each old male reserves a little more than a square rod of 

 space to himself. For this proceeding they evidently have two reasons. 

 First, from the constant liability to surprise from their rear, which is 

 their weakest point, they require room enough to make one leap in 

 turnin"- before being able to defend themselves or to attack their ene- 

 mies. Their eyes being adapted to seeing in the water, their vision is 

 feeble when they are out of that element. Consequently they have to 

 rely mainly on the senses of hearing and smell for warning of danger ; 

 hence while dozing on the rocks every movement or sound in their 

 vicinity keeps them constantly turning towards the direction from 

 which it proceeds. A second reason is that each requires that amount 

 of space for the reception of his ten or fifteen wives.* 



Male seals continue to arrive in small numbers daily, a few of which 

 are yearlings ; those two, three, four, and five years old arrive in about 

 equal proportions. Those older than this are more numerous than the 

 younger, each one of which fights his way to his old place on the rook- 

 ery,! or, taking a new one, prepares to contend for it in case the owner 

 comes to take it. As they acknowledge no right but that of might, the 

 later comer has to select again. The growling and fighting are con- 

 stant, so that day and night the aggregated sound is like that of an 

 approaching railway train. 



About the 15th of June the males have all assembled, the ground 

 being then fully occupied by them, as they lay waiting for the females 

 to come. These appear in small numbers at first, but increase as the 

 season advances till the middle of July, when the rookeries are all full, 

 the females often overlapping each other. 



* Steller gives the number of females to each male as eight to fifteen or even fifty. 

 (" Mares polygami sunt, unus ssepi 8, 15, ad 50 fcemollas habet, quas anxie semula- 

 bundus custodit, et vel alio tantillium appropinquante, in furorem agitur.") Several of 

 the carle" <cul<. as well as all the species of eared seals, are well known to be polyga- 

 mous. The seraglios of the male sea elephant, whoso habits are better known than 

 those of any other of the group, are said to embrace frequently from fifteen to twenty 

 females. — j. a. a. 



f Steller remarks that the males sometimes become so attached to their stations that 

 they prefer death to the loss of them. — J. a. a. 



