Temporary employees: Fishery Aids Rex 

 Thomas, Jerry E. Burdick, Ronald M. Lee, 

 and Lloyd H. Stebbins. 



Eugene T. Lyons, of Colorado State Uni- 

 versity, carried on hookworm studies from 20 

 May to 9 June aboard a vessel. 



RESEARCH IN 1962 



Distribution of Seals by Time, 

 Place, and Numbers 



The distribution of seals observed and col- 

 lected is shown in figure 1. The three areas 

 through which vessels operated (western 

 Alaska, Unimak Pass, and Bering Sea) have 

 been divided into a series of squares, each 

 representing 100 square nautical miles. 



The western Alaska area includes the waters 

 south of the Alaska Peninsula and the Aleutian 

 Islands between Cape Pankof on the east and 

 Samalga Island on the west. Investigations ex- 

 tended, at some points, to about 75 miles off- 

 shore. 



Unimak Pass includes the waters in the pass 

 and the southern and northern approaches to 

 the pass. Included in the southern approach 

 are Ugamak Strait, Derbin Strait, Rootok 

 Strait, and the sea to a distance of 3 to 5 miles 

 south of Avatanik, Tigalda, and Ugamak Islands 

 and northeastward to Arch Point, Unimak 

 Island, The northern approach includes the 

 sea from 5 miles north of Cape Sarichef, 

 Unimak Island to 10 miles north of AkunHead, 

 Akun Island. The Unimak Pass area as de- 

 scribed above is the locality referred to in all 

 tables in this report with the exception of table 

 4. This table includes data for feeding and 

 resting grounds slightly outside the pass, as 

 shown in figure 2, in order to improve the 

 clarity of discussions of seal movements in 

 Unimak Pass and vicinity. Dates, times, and 

 places in the text of this section of the report 

 refer to this area, unless otherwise specified. 



The Bering Sea area includes the waters of 

 the Bering Sea north of the Alaska Peninsula 

 and the Aleutian Islands between Cape Sarichef, 

 Unimak Island, on the east, Samalga Island on 

 the west, and the Pribilof Islands on the north. 



Tables 1 and 2 show the numbers and rela- 

 tive abundance of seals seen and collected in 

 the three areas by 10-day periods. 



The largest numbers of seals were seen and 

 collected in western Alaska during the 10-day 

 period of 11-20 June. In Unimak Pass, 11-20 

 August was the period of peak abundance. In the 

 Bering Sea, this period was during the first 

 20 days of August. 



Grouping of seals (table 3) follows the gen- 

 eral pattern observed in previous years. Ap- 

 proximately 88 percent of the total seals ob- 

 served in 1962 were in groups of three seals 

 or fewer. Larger groups, from 15 to 64 

 animals (as seen in 1960), were not observed. 

 Fourteen seals made up the largest group found 

 in 1962. 



All but three fur seals collected in 1962 

 were taken in three areas, western Alaska, 

 Unimak Pass, and Bering Sea. These three 

 seals were taken on 6 May about 110 miles 

 west of Cape Ommaney in the Gulf of Alaska. 



Western Alaska. — Seal observations began 

 on 5 May when a vessel left Cape Ommaney 

 to cross the Gulf of Alaska to Kodiak. Seals 

 were seen in the Gulf of Alaska on 6, 7, and 8 

 May. Western Alaska was entered on 16 May; 

 a few seals were seen from Davidson Bank to 

 Tigalda Island. During May most of the seals 

 seen were in western Alaska rather than in 

 Unimak Pass. In June, seals began arriving in 

 western Alaska from the eastward in greater 

 numbers. The population fluctuated periodi- 

 cally as seals moved through the area, pausing 

 a few days to feed and rest, then moving on. 

 In July the number of seals decreased. As 

 the month progressed the proportion of young 

 seals in the catch increased and in August the 

 population was composed mainly of young 

 animals. A few post partum females were 

 collected each trip. Of the animals collected 

 in 2 days during early September, 2- to 4- 

 year-old females made up 55 percent of the 

 catch and mature females in post partum 

 condition 26 percent. No collecting was done 

 in western Alaska during October. 



Unimak Pass. — Unimak Pass and vicinity 

 was selected as an area for intensive study in 



