254 



PIED SEAL. 



Phoca Bicolor. P. nigra inauriculata, albo varia, naso elongato, 



pedibus postertoribus lunatis. 

 Earless black Seal, variegated with white, with elongated nose, 



and lunated hind feet. 



Le Phoque a ventre blanc. Buff, suppl. 6. p. 3 10. //. 44. 

 Pied Seal. Pennant Quadr. 2. p. 273. 



THIS species, according to Mr. Pennant, dif- 

 fers from the former, in having the nose taper 

 and lengthened ; the fore feet furnished with five 

 toes inclosed in a membrane, but very distinct : 

 the claws long and strait: the hind feet very 

 broad : five distinct toes, with the claws just ex- 

 tending to the margin of the membrane, which 

 expands into the form of a crescent. 



In the first or folio edition of the British Zoo- 

 logy, it is not considered as distinct from the com- 

 mon Seal, of which it was regarded as a mere va- 

 riety; but in the third edition of the History of 

 Quadrupeds it is described and figured under the 

 title of the Pied Seal. It is also figured by the 

 Count de Buffon in his sixth supplemental volume, 

 and is there considered as a distinct species. The 

 Count de Buffon observes, that it frequents the 

 coasts of the Adriatic, growing to the length of 

 seven feet and a half. In colour it varies, like 

 the common Seal ; Mr. Pennant's specimen being 

 black, with white throat and neck; while that de- 

 scribed by Buffon was black, with a white belly. 

 It may be tamed like the common Seal, and is 



