The number of seals seen off California 

 decreased from April to June as a result of 

 the northward nnigration of pregnant seals. 

 This decrease was not apparent off Washington 

 in April when the survey ended near the peak 

 of migration. 



As in other years, males fornned only a 

 small proportion of the total number of fur 

 seals wintering off California. 



Twenty tagged seals (including seven that 

 had lost their tags) were collected in 1965. 



Of 387 females collected in 1965, 45 percent 

 were nulliparous, 12 percent were nonpregnant 

 primiparous or multiparous, and 44 percent 

 were pregnant. Three primiparous 5- year- olds 

 were the youngest pregnant seals taken. 



Data collected since 1958 on 5,057 pregnant 

 females show that 51.3 percent of the preg- 

 nancies occurred in the left uterine horn; the 

 first pregnancy occurs more frequently in 

 that horn. 



Male and female fetuses were about equally 

 represented (50.8 percent females) in 4,369 

 fetuses. 



Algae were found growing on guard hairs of 

 114 seals (42.2 percent), and gooseneck bar- 

 nacles on guard hairs of 90 seals (33.3 per- 

 cent) collected off California in 1965. 



In a given area, the major food species of 

 fur seals usually rennain the same, but their 

 rank may change from year to year and season 

 to season. 



A squid, Moroteuthis robusta . was recorded 

 for the first time as fur seal food. 



Merluccius productus and Loligo opalescens 

 were the major food species (by volume) in 

 stomachs of fur seals taken off California. 



Engraulis mordax and Thaleichthys pacificus 

 were the major food species off Washington. 



Miscellaneous objects in fur seal stomachs 

 included bird feathers, pebbles, small frag- 

 ments of wood, and kelp. 



The volume and frequency of occurrence of 

 commercially important food species in fur 

 seal stomachs give no cause for alarnn about 

 predation on commercial species of fish. 



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ANDRIASHEV, ANATOLY P. 



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 1965. The California marine fish catch for 



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 CLOTHIER, CHARLES R, 



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83 p. 



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and FORD WILKE. 



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1' 



