702 



THE CARNIVORES 



Californian 

 Sea-Lion 



to hear or fear any other sound. As they lie on the ground in a compact mass, one 

 of the men takes an umbrella, and goes twenty to thirty yards to the rear of the 

 herds, and approaching stealthily until he is quite near, suddenly expands the um- 

 brella, and runs with it all along the edge of the herd; then, closing it, he retires to 

 repeat the manoeuvre. This has the effect of rousing the rear rank, which, thus 

 suddenly alarmed, plunges forward and arouses those in front, which suddenly be- 

 gin struggling and biting. The return of the man with the umbrella communicates 

 another shock, and adds another wave to the sluggish mass. This is repeated at in- 

 tervals of four or five minutes, till the successive shocks have aroused the whole 

 herd, when, with much roaring and bellowing, the whole mass begins to move, grad- 

 ually extending itself in a long irregular line in open order, each animal lumbering 

 along as best it can. By shouting and waving flags at the rear, and on the flanks 

 of the herd, they are kept moving until it is necessary to halt them again for rest." 

 Finally, the herd reaches the village, when the sea-lions, being far too formi- 

 dable animals to be dispatched with clubs, are shot with rifles; the full-grown males 

 being killed first, after which the fore part of the herd is driven back upon and over 

 the rear, when the slaughter is continued with lances. The description of this scene 

 is, however, by no means pleasant reading, and may accordingly be passed over. 



The Californian sea-lion (O. gillespii}, which, far from being re- 

 stricted to the country from which it derives its name, is found on 

 both sides of the North Pacific, is a much smaller species than the 



last, from which it is readily 

 distinguished by the convex 

 crown of the head, and the 

 sudden descent of the 

 profile at the eye; the side 

 view of the head somewhat 

 recalling that of the dog- 

 faced baboons. The bristles 

 on the side of the muzzle 

 are also very small. The 

 skull is characterized by its 

 narrowness and elongation, 

 and also by the great 

 development of the bony 

 crests on the brain case. 

 The general color is a dark 

 chestnut brown, becoming 

 blackish brown on the under parts and limbs; but there is great seasonal and indi- 

 vidual variation in this respect. Mr. Allen gives the total length of adult males as 

 varying from seven to eight feet; those measurements being taken from the muzzle 

 to the end of the outstretched flippers. 



There has been some confusion as regards the habits of this species, 

 owing to its having been confounded with the northern sea-lion. Both 

 species occur on the Farallone islands, near San Francisco; but the present species 



HEAD OF CALIFORNIAN SEA-LION. 



(After Forbes.) 



Habits 



