28 



EDWARD A. WILSON. 



have been published, notably an excellent one by Mr. Bernacchi in his narrative 

 of the ' Southern Cross ' Expedition, and in the ' Southern Cross ' Report (p. 26), is 

 markedly different to all the other species. The head is disproportionately large 

 for the rest of the body, and the power of the neck is immense. The rest of the 

 animal tails off in a more snake-like fashion than in any other of the Southern seals, 

 suggesting great power and rapidity of movement under water. The total length from 

 nose to tail tip of the four specimens in our collection is respectively 128 inches in 

 No. 64, 106 inches in No. 65, 131 inches in No. 66, and 107 in No. 18. These figures, 

 however, do not give a true idea of the size to which the animal may grow, for Sir 

 James Ross captured one with a length of 144 inches. The proportions of the animal 

 will be better understood by the following measurements, which were in each case 

 taken in the flesh, and it may here be noted that the example recently mounted in the 

 British Museum Gallery (No. 64 of the ' Discovery ' collection), was modelled carefully to 

 these figures, so that its form represents as nearly as possible the proportions of life: 



Nose to tail tip 128 inches. 



Diameter, taken with callipers from side to side : 



At a point 12 inches behind the nose 11 inches. 



24 17J 



36 29 



48 23 



60 20 



72 19| 



84 16 



96 16 



108 13 



The end of the fore flipper, lying along the side, was 62| inches from the nose. 



At a point 90 inches from the nose was the smallest diameter of the belly, 15 inches. 



The following dimensions were taken by Dr. Davidson from examples captured 

 on the 'Morning,':- No 65 ^ ^ ? ^ ^ ? 



Inches. Inches. Inches. 



Length from tip of nose to end of tail 106 131 107 



Greatest girth ... ... ... ... ... 57 75 



Length of fore flipper 22 29^ 29 



Breadth 13 16 14 



Length of hind flipper 21 24 21 



Spread 22 26 2?i 



Girth under the fore flippers ... ... ... 661 



Girth above the tail 37 



In the stomach of the specimen which we procured were the remains, almost a 

 complete skin, of an Emperor penguin, 3 feet in length. In the stomach of one 

 taken by Dr. Davidson, on the ' Morning,' were the remains of a young Weddell's Seal. 

 Fish, cephalopods and penguins seem to form its chief diet in the Antarctic seas, and 

 in one instance 28lbs. of fish are reported to have been taken from the stomach of a 

 single animal. On the ice floes it seems to be even less active than Weddell's 



