130 SEALS AND SEAL SHOOTING 



of April, and perhaps, in some cases, till still 

 later, although I do not believe that they stay 

 much beyond this period, which is their mating 

 season. Their period of gestation is about the 

 same as the common seal, that is to say about nine 

 months. Like it, they also bring forth but one 

 young at a birth, except in rare instances, a few 

 of which have come under my own knowledge, 

 when two are produced. In one case I had shot 

 the mother before she gave birth to twins. The 

 males of this species fight very savagely amongst 

 themselves, frequently bearing scars and marks 

 from the teeth and claws of their rivals. They 

 do not seem to be possessed of any sense of smell, 

 or if so, it is not very highly developed. While 

 out shooting for them I have frequently seen them 

 come to the surface, within five or six yards of 

 and to the leeward of me, and so long as we did 

 not move they did not pay the slightest attention 

 to our proximity ; on the slightest movement, how- 

 ever, they would disappear, although, if not too 

 shy, or previously shot at, they would come up 

 again a little further off. When shy they do not 

 reappear except at a long distance and frequently 

 remain under water from fifteen to twenty min- 

 utes. When wounded with a rifle ball or a large 

 buckshot, unless they are nearly dead, they will 

 go a great distance, but if struck by small shot, 

 such as Number A, they soon come to the surface. 

 The only way in which I can account for this is 



