98 PATAGONIAN EXPEDITIONS : ZOOLOGY. 



ing appears to have been begun in 1803 on the coast of Patagonia, and 

 was prosecuted there more or less regularly till 1819, during which period 

 a total of about 15,000 barrels of sea-elephant oil appears to have been 

 taken from Patagonia alone. In 181 7 about 2,500 barrels were taken at 

 the Falkland Islands, and also about 2,500 barrels in 1837. ^^ 1820-22 

 about 4,000 barrels were taken at the South Shetland Islands, and again 

 about 2,000 barrels at the same islands in 1831. About 2,000 barrels are 

 accredited to the South Georgian Islands in 1829. In 1838 5,000 barrels 

 were obtained at Kerguelen Land ; in 1838 and 1839 about 5,000 barrels 

 were taken at the Crozet Islands. During the decade i84o-'5o nearly 

 half the take of sea-elephant oil (about 16,000 barrels), came from Ker- 

 guelen Land, the total take, so far as statistics are available, being about 

 37,000 barrels. About this time the sea-elephant hunters began to visit 

 Heard Island, and of the 84,000 barrels taken during the decade of 1850- 

 '60, four-fifths were obtained at Kerguelen Land and Heard Island (the 

 latter first discovered in 1853). During the following decade (i86o-'7o) 

 about 36,000 barrels were reported as taken, nearly all of which came 

 from the two last-named islands. The same is true of the decade from 

 1870 to 1880, but the amount of oil declined for this period to about 30,000 

 barrels, the decline being especially marked toward the close of the decade. 

 It has been stated that during fifty years, beginning with the year 1837, 

 not less than 175,000 barrels of sea-elephant oil were obtained from Ker- 

 guelen Land and Heard Island. As in later years, young of all ages as 

 well as adults were taken, regardless, also, of season and condition, the 

 number of sea-elephants annually destroyed at these seal islands must 

 have been in the neighborhood 40,000 individuals, or a total of probably 

 over 2,000,000. 



"At these islands certain extensive beaches are described as being inac- 

 cessible from the water on account of the boisterous seas which constantly 

 prevail, while precipitous cliffs render it impossible to transport the 

 oil from these beaches to the vessels. Here great numbers of sea-elephants 

 annually haul up in security to breed, thus preserving the species from 

 extermination, which doubtless otherwise would long since have over- 

 taken them. 



" More or less sea-elephant oil has been taken annually since 1880, but 

 the amount is small in comparison with the earlier years, owing to the 

 increasing scarcity of the sea-elephants. 



