712 THE CARNIVORES 



THE SOUTHERN FUR-SEALS 



In the Southern Hemisphere there are some four species of sea-bears or fur- 

 seals, all of which differ from the northern sea-bear in their much longer, narrower, 

 and more-depressed muzzles, and also in the circumstance that the flaps of skin pro- 

 jecting in advance of the toes of the hind-flippers are much less elongated. The 

 southern fur-seals are also, as a rule, decidedly grayer in color than their northern 

 cousin. There is still some uncertainty as to the number of species belonging to 

 this group, and their resemblance to one another is so close that it requires an ex- 

 pert to distinguish between them. 



The South- American, or Falkland island fur-seal (O. australis] in- 

 habits the Galapagos islands, and the shores and islands of South 

 can Fur- 

 Seals America southward from Chili on the western, and from the Rio de la 



Plata on the eastern side; being more numerous on the Falkland and 

 South Shetland islands than on the continent itself. The males attain a length of 

 from six to seven feet, while the females average about five feet; the disproportion 

 between the sexes being thus much less than in the northern sea-bear. The color 

 of the fur is distinctly gray. 



The habits of this species seem to be very similar to those of its 

 northern cousin; the old males arriving on the Falklands before the fe- 

 males, and similar contests taking place for the possession of the latter, which arrive 

 in December. The cubs are born during the same month, and are able to swim well 

 by February. The young males remain at sea during the greater part of the summer. 

 not landing till February or March. They sojourn on land till the latter part of 

 April, when they again take to the water; but toward the end of June they once 

 more visit the shore for several weeks, remaining partly on land and partly in the 

 sea. When Weddell visited the South Shetlands during his voyage, lasting from 

 1818 to 1821, these seals were very numerous, and had so little fear of man that 

 numbers of them were killed and skinned without disturbing the remainder of the 

 party. Moseley, during the voyage of the Challenger, found, as already mentioned, 

 these seals still fairly numerous on Kerguelen's Land, although, from the reckless 

 way in which they were slaughtered, they appeared in imminent danger of total ex- 

 termination. Like the sea-lions of the same regions, the southern fur-seals prey at 

 times upon penguins. 



The Cape fur-seal (O. pusilla) is a very well-marked species, char- 

 >ea acterized by the straight profile of the head, the overhanging and 

 sharply-pointed muzzle, the relatively-long ears, and the extreme length of the 

 numerous bristles depending from the upper lip. A living example, formerly ex- 

 hibited in the London Zoological Society's Gardens, had a whitish-red fur grizzled 

 with blackish hairs, while the under parts were of a reddish-brown color. This 

 seal appears to be confined to South Africa, inhabiting the small islands around the 

 Cape of Good Hope, as well as others some forty miles distant from Port Elizabeth. 

 It probably also once inhabited Tristan da Cunha. It is still fairly common, but its 

 fur is of comparatively little value, owing to the shortness of the hair, although 

 that of the young animals is longer. Some years ago, from 70,000 to 80,000 skins 



