62 PEOCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF 



by degrees, frequently reclining as if to sleep, then again moving up or along 

 the shore, appearing not content with their last resting place. In this man- 

 ner they would ascend ravines or low intervals half a mile or more. They 

 are not so active on shore as the seals, but when excited to inordinate exertion 

 their motions are quick, the whole body quivers in their semi-vaulting, crawl- 

 ing gait, and the animal at such times manifests great fatigue ; notwithstand- 

 ing its unwieldiness we have sometimes found them on broken and elevated 

 ground fifty or sixty feet above the sea. The principal seasons of their coming to 

 shore are when they are about to shed their coats, and the females to bring forth 

 their young (which is one at a time, rarely two), and the mating season. These 

 seasons for "hauling up," as it is termed, are more marked in southern latitudes, 

 as I have learned from ship masters who have taken seals about Kerguelen's 

 Land, the Crozets and Hurds Islands. The different periods were known as the 

 pupping cow season, the brown cow, bulls and cows, and march bull seasons. 

 But in the species of our coast, either from the influence of climate, or some 

 other cause, we have noticed young pups with their mothers at quite the op- 

 posite months. The time of gestation is supposed to be three-fourths of the 

 year. The continual hunting of these animals may have possibly driven them 

 to irregularities. The most marked season, however, that we could discover 

 was that of the matured males, which shed their coats later than the younger 

 ones, and the females ; still, among the largest herd of these gregarious crea- 

 tures taken on Sta. Barbara Island, in June 1852, were several cows* with 

 pups apparently but a few days old. When they come on shore for the pur- 

 pose of '' shedding," if not disturbed, they remain out of the water till the old 

 hair falls off; by the time this change comes about, the animals are supposed 

 to lose at least half their fat. In the stomach of the Sea-elephant a few peb- 

 bles are found, which has given rise to the saying that " they take in ballast 

 before going down," (returning to the sea). On warm sunny days we have 

 watched them come up singly on a smooth beach and burrow in the dry sand, 

 throwing the loose particles that collected about the fore limbs over their 

 backs, nearly covering themselves from view. The largest number we ever 

 found in one herd was one hundred and sixty-five, which lay promiscuously 

 along the beach or up the ravine near by. The mode adopted to capture them 

 is to land in front of the " rookery," getting between them and the water, 

 with clubs and lances in hand, then raising a loud noise and moving slowly 

 toward them, they retreat back, appearing in a great state of alarm. Occa- 

 sionally an overgrown male will give battle, or attempt to escape, but a ball 

 from a musket through his brain despatches him, or some one with a lance 

 checks his progress by thrusting it into the roof of his mouth, which causes 

 the animal to throw back its head and settle on its haunches ; meanwhile 

 two men with heavy oaken clubs give it repeated blows about the head until 

 it is stunned or killed. After dispatching those that are disposed to show 

 resistance the party rush on to the main body, and the onslaught creates so 

 complete a panic among these harmless creatures, that losing all control of 

 their actions they will climb, tumble or roll over each other, when prevented 

 from further retreat by the projecting cliffs. One instance occurred where a 

 rookery of sixty-five were captured, and several were found that had neither 

 been clubbed or lanced, but were smothered by numbers of their kind piled 

 upon them. The whole flock when attacked manifest alarm by uttering their 

 peculiar roar, the sound of which among the large males is nearly as loud as 

 the lowing of an ox, but more prolonged in one strain, hoarser, and accom- 

 panied with much rattling in the throat. 



The quantity of blood in this species is supposed to be double that con- 

 tained in a neat animal in proportion to its bulk. After the capture the flay- 



* The term " cow and calf" are whalemen's names for mother and offspring of those 

 animals. Sealers apply the term clapmatch to the female seals, and to the young, pup. 

 Between whalers and sealers has originated cow for the female sea-elephant, wliile her 

 ottspring is called a "pup." 



[April, 



