MAMMALS. 



259 



lu PetroflPs Report on the PopulatioD, ludustries, autl Resources of Alaska, Ceusiis Office, 

 18S4, he classes the Cinaamon and the Grizzly Bears together under the heading of Brown Bears, 

 or Vrsu.t richardsoni, and ignores the existence of the present animal. 



The very light color of this species wonld render the name of Yellow Bear suitable for it. 



The half-dozen skins which came under my notice were all very heavily furred, and of a dingy 

 yellowish, in some cases approaching a whitish, but not in the least suggesting an albino. The fur 

 was dense and matted in all, and very much heavier than on the other bears taken at the same 

 time and place. The skins are not large, appearing to average about the size of a well-grown 

 Black Bear, and never reaching the great size of a large Ginuamou Bear. 



The fiicts regarding its distribution were secured from the fur traders, who could not furnish 

 anything regarding its habits. The latter are probably not peculiar unless the animal's light color 

 and heavy fur indicate that it spends a smaller part of the winter in its den than the other 

 species, which is not likely, as its range is in tiie part of the continent where the cold in winter is 

 very great and long periods of very low temperature prevail. 



Erignathus barbatus (Fabr.). Bearded Seal (Esk. Mu-ldM). 



Three skulls of this seal were obtained. Xo. 20783, adult, though not old, has the teeth worn 

 down to the roots, a condition which seems to be arrived at quite early iu this species. Xos. 21466, 

 2146, having a basicranial length of lOl'""" and 187'"'°, respectively, are still young; the occipito- 

 sphenoidal and other sutures are still open. 



MeasuremeniK of three skulls. 



Biographical notes. — The present species is the largest of the hair seals found on the Alaskan 

 coast, and the males reach a weight of six or eight hundretl pounds ; the females are somewhat 

 smaller. Its distribution is more northerly than that of the Harbor Seal. On the south the limit 

 of its range coincides very closely with the northern limit of the range of the Sea Lion. 



