

PHOCII'.K. 



FHOC1DJJ. 



At thi* prriod UM 



in the mala. Six or MTto week* 



. 



clap** twfor* UM young an ooudooUd to sea, to familiarise them with 

 which Ut* wboU troop abandon the shore, awimming about for three 

 VMka or more, wbrn they return to the ooaat* for the purpose of 

 breeding. The young malee *tay with the female* till their proboecia 

 ii developed, announcing that they hare arrived at maturity. During 

 the breeding teaion, bloody battle* take place among the male*, in 

 which th*y are often severely wounded, but rarely killed, while the 

 female* calmly wait the issue, and receive the conqueror. The period 

 of metation i* aaid to be nine or ten month*. 



They are a hannlee* race, never attacking man unlens in defence of 

 themwlve* and their young. One of An*on'* aailora lost hU life by 

 exasperating . mother, in whoae presence he skinned her young one. 

 Their <lipo.ition it however gentle and affectionate ; and a young one, 

 petted by an Kiiirlish seaman, became ao attached to hi* master from 

 kind treatment for a few month*, that it would come to hi* call, allow 

 him to mount upon it* back, and put hi* hind* into it* mouth. 

 1 heir length of life i* estimated at 25 or SO year*. 



Thrir tongue*, when *altd, are conaidered savoury and wholesome, 

 but the fleah i* black, oily, and indigestible. The heart, though tough 

 and hard, i* sometime* eaU-n, but the liver appear* to be unwhole- 

 some. The akin, though not valued for its fur, i* extensively used 

 for carriage and hone harness, on account of it* thickness and strength. 

 But the oil i* the great object for which the animal i* hunted. 



Arttoctpkai<u (V. Cuvier). Head with a narrow retracted muzzle. 

 The four intermediate incisor* of the upper jaw separated in their 

 nii.ldle by a deep notch ; the lower incisors notched from before back- 

 wards. Molar* with a single root, lea* thick than the crown, which 

 eonsiaU of a tubercle, furnished at it* base before and behind with a 

 mailer tubercle. External 



Skull of Arctotrfhalut. 



Dental Formula: -Incisors,?; Canine*, L=! ; Molar*, !b_ 6 = 86. 

 1 1 5 5 



Teeth of JrrtonpUfot. 



A. ultima. This is the (Maria urutta of Desmarest ; P/ioca urtina 

 of Linnicu* ; I'rna maruttw, Sea-Bear, of Steller; L'Ours Mann of 

 Buffon ; the Ursine Seal of some authors. 



It is the size of a large bear ; girth at the shoulder 5 feet, near the 

 tail 20 inches. Fur brown, acquiring a grayish tint at the point of 

 the hairs in old age. External ear* one inch eight lines long, conical, 

 erect, covered with short hair, and opening by an oblong slit, which 

 is shut in the water. Nails very slender and minute. Length 7J feet. 



It is found on the islands on the north-west point of America, 

 Kamtchatka, and the Kurile Islands. 



When these migratory seals appear off Kamtchatka and the Kuriles 

 early in the spring, they are in high condition, and the female* are 

 pregnant. They remain on or about the shore for two mouths, 

 during which the female* bring forth. They are polygamous, and 

 live in families, every male being surrounded by a crowd of females 

 (from 50 to 80), whom he guard* with the greatest jealousy. These 

 families, each including the young, amounting to 100 or 120, live 

 separate, though they crowd the shore, and that to such an extent on 

 the islands off the north-west point of America, that it i* said they 

 oblige the traveller to quit it and scale the neighbouring rocks. Both 

 male and female are very affectionate to their young, and fierce in 

 their defence ; but the males are often tyrannically cruel to the 

 females, which are very submissive. If one family encroaches on the 

 station of another, a general fight is the consequence. They will not, 

 in fact they dare not, leave their stations, for if they did they must 

 encroach on that of some other family. Steller relates that he had 

 been beset by these seals for six hours together, and was at last obliged 

 to climb a precipice to get rid of the infuriated animals, at the immi- 

 nent peril of his life. They have their war-notes and several other 

 intonations. When amusing themselves on the shore, they low like a 

 cow, chirp like a cricket after a victory, and when they are wounded 

 cry like a whelp. They swim very swiftly, and are as great a terror 

 to other seals as the Sea-Lion is to them. 



The skin, which is very thick, is covered with hair, like that of the 

 common seal, but a great deal longer, standing erect, and very thick. 

 The skins of the young are highly prized for clothing ; and Steller 

 speaks of a garment which he had mode for himself from one, when 

 lie was in Behring's Island, with grateful remembrance. 



Ursine Seal (JLrctocrphaltu uninui). 



Plalyrhynchut (F. Cuvier). Incisors pointed ; molars with no 

 secondary point, except at their anterior part. Cerebral region very 

 much elevated, and the muzzle much more enlarged than in Arcto- 

 i-'phaltu. The complete number of teeth the same as in that genus. 



r.xu-rii:il IMI-.I. 



Skull of rialyrltynctioi. 



