THE SEA LION 



43 



The Sea Lion. — Whakaha. 



Arctocephalus Jiookeri. 



Male — Greyish black above, dark brown below; the neck very thick, 

 and with longer hairs. Length, when fnll grown, ten or twelve feet. 

 Female — Pale tawny. Length, six feet. Young — At first like the 

 iemale, then brownish black. Auckland Islands and Campbell Island. 

 The male only is called sea lion by the sealers, the female is generally 

 called sea bear. It is still very common at the Auckland Islands. 



The Auckland Islands were the scene of sealing activity for 

 many years, the first expeditions setting out from Sydney early 



(Traus. Zool. Hoc.i 



Sea Lion. 



in the nineteenth century. The industry, which was conducted 

 on a large scale, reached the height of its prosperity between 

 1810 and 1820. The sealers had to suffer great hardships, but 

 they were attracted by the lucrative trade, and large numbers of 

 seals were slaughtered in the race for wealth. 



Captain T. IMusgrave, in his interesting journal entitled Cast 

 Away on the Auckland Islands, published in 1866. gives detailed 

 accounts of the seals' habits. Dealing with the sea lion, he 

 says : — ' ' The females are of a grey, golden butf , or beautiful 

 silver colour, sometimes spotted like the leopard, and they are 

 called tiger seals. Their fur is about an inch long, not very 

 soft, but very thick, and particularly sleek and smooth. The 



