116 



The following pages, 275, 276, and 277, contain a description of .fnr- 

 seals in the Antarctic, taken from tlie writings of Gapt. Weddell: 



Kotliing regarding tlie fur seal is more astonishing than the dispro 

 portion in the size of the male and female. A large grown male, from 

 the tip of the nose to the extremit}^ of the tail, is 6 feet 9 inches, while 

 the female is not more than 3.^ feet. Tliis class of the males, however, 

 is not the most numerous, but being physically the most Y)owerful they 

 keep in their possession all the females to the exclusion of the younger 

 branches; hence, at the time of parturition, the males attending the 

 females may be computed as one to twenty, which shows this to be, 

 perhaj)S, the most polygamous of large animals. 



They are in their nature completely gregarious; but they flock 

 together and assemble on the coast at diU'erent periods and in dis- 

 tinct classes. The males of the largest size go on shore about the 

 middle of November to wait the arrival of the females, who of necessity 

 nuist soon follow for the purpose of bringing forth their young. These 

 in the early part of December begin to land, and they are no sooner out 

 of the water than they are taken possession of by the males, who have 

 many serious battles with each other in procuring their respective 

 seraglios and by a peculiar instinct they carefully protect the females 

 under their charge daring the whole period of gestation. By the end of 

 D.'cember all the female seals have accomplish the purpose of their land- 

 ing. The time of gestation may be considered nearly twelve mo.ths, and 

 they seldom have more than one at a time, wliich they suckle and rear 

 apparently with great affection. By the middle of February the young 

 are able to take to the water, and after being taught to swim by 

 the mother they abandon them on the shore, where they remain till their 

 coats of fur and hair are completed. During the latter end of February 

 what are called the dog-seals goon shore; these are the young seals of 

 the two preceding years, and such males as, from the want of age and 

 sti ength, are not allowed to attend the pregnant females. These young 

 seals come on shore for the purpose of renewing their annual coats, 

 which being done by the end of April they take the water, and scarcely 

 any are seen on shore agaiu till the end of June, when some young 

 males come up and go off alternately. They continue to do this for six 

 or seven weeks, aiul the shores are then again abandoned till the end of 

 August, when a herd of small young seals of both sexes come on shore 

 for about live or six weeks, and then retire to the water. The large 

 male seals take up their places on shore, as has been before described, 

 which completes the intercourse all classes have with the shore during 

 the whole year. The young are at first black; in a few weeks they 

 become gray, and soon alter obtain their coat of hair and fur. 



When these iSouth Shetland seals were first visited they had no 

 apprehension of danger from meeting men; in iact, they would lie still 

 while their neighbors were killed and skinned; but latterly they had 

 acquired habits for counteracting danger by i^lacing themselves on 

 rocks, from which they could iu a moment precipitate themselves into 

 the water. The agility of this creature is almost greater than, from its 

 a]^pearance, an observer Avould anticipate. I have seen them, indeed, 

 often escape from men running fast in pursuit to kill them. 



These statements, collated in volume 12 of the Naturalist's Library, 

 which Lord Hannen tells us is a standard work, were written about 

 1820 to 1830, and some of them earlier, by the most scientific natural- 



