80 IT. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



The natural segregation of the young males is of material aid in 

 driving the seals to the killing field. A few of the native workmen 

 can rim between the area which the seals occupy and the sea, and 

 easily drive them further inland like sheep without disturbing those 

 occupying the breeding grounds. 



There is a great difference in the size of the adult males and the 

 adult females, the full-grown male reaching a maximum weight of 

 about 700 pounds, while the females weigh from 75 to 100 pounds. 

 This disparity in size is of great advantage to the male in maintaining 

 discipline over his flock. The females give birth to their first young 

 at the age of 3 years, the period of gestation being between 11 and 12 

 months. 



The nomenclature used in respect to these animals is rather unusual, 

 most of the names being literal translations of the Russian and native 

 names. The adult males are called "bulls"; the adult females, 

 "cows"; the young, "pups"; and the male seals midw^ay in age 

 between pups and bulls are called "bachelors." Each bull's collec- 

 tion of females is called a "harem." 



When the breeding season ends at the Pribilofs, the seals gradually 

 take to the water, where they remain until returning to the islands in 

 the following year. While at sea they migrate southward through the 

 passes of the Aleutian Islands, thence southeastw^ard along the coast 

 of North America. The females go as far south as the latitude of 

 Southern California, the younger males do not proceed so far, while 

 the adult males winter in the Gulf of Alaska and south of the Aleutian 

 chain from whence, in the spring, the annual cycle of migration is 

 resumed, 



QUOTAS FOR KILLING AND RESERVING 



The plans approved by the department for sealing operations in 1930 

 provided for reserving 8,000 3-year-old male fur seals for future 

 breeding stock and Idlling as many of the remaining 3-year-old males 

 as were available. The animals for the reserve were to be selected in 

 approximately the ratio of 4 on St. Paul Island to 1 on St. George 

 Island and were to be marked so as to insure their immunity from 

 slaughter throughout the period of sealing operations. Provision was 

 made for increasing the reserve if counts of the idle and harem bulls in 

 the breeding season indicated the advisability of such action. Inas- 

 much as some of the 3-year-old males are never taken up in either 

 the killing drives or the drives for marking reserves, the number of 

 animals remaining for the reserve is always greater than the number 

 marked. 



KILLINGS 



In 1930, 42,500 fur seals were killed, of which 34,382 were taken on 

 St. Paul Island and 8,118 on St. George Island. The fall killings 

 have been discontinued. Details in regard to the killings are shown 

 in the following tabulations: 



