lU) .\J:W YORK ZOOLOGICAL SOCILTV. 



in tlic killing- of all the seals that cmild be found. At the time 

 (if niv tirst visit In the ( lalapag'os Island^, in iSSS. I was informed 

 ihal llure were (niK a \vw seals remaining about the miinhabited 

 westerly islands of the arehii>elago. It was a matter of great 

 surprise when in iSt^j and iS()8 a vessel returned to San I'^ran- 

 cisco from the ( lalapagos Islands with a catch of several lunidred 

 fur seal^. It ai)i)ears that the few that had eseajied the slaughter 

 of the last voyage, fifteen years before, had established them- 

 selves on the identical rookeries from which they had been driven, 

 as comparisons of the log books of the vessels showed. The 

 nucleus of a fine lierd existed there, unknown to any one. There 

 is no doubt that it could have been developed into an important 

 seal fishery, if the fact had been known in time to ])revent its 

 destruction bv raiders. It is i)robable that a few individuals have 

 escaped this last slaughter, and that by the ])roi)i])t ])rotection 

 of the rookeries b\- the ( "lovernnu'ut nf l-.cuadnr. a ti>her\' could 

 be established. 



Ciaudchuipc Seal. — Another si)ecies of fur st'al { . hrtoccphaliis 

 to7ciiscii(ii), the most northerly off-shoot of the Antarctic race 

 of fur seals, formerly inhabited ( lua(leloui)e and other islands oft 

 the west coast of Lower California. From the scattered records 

 that have been found, it ai:)pears that 15.000 seals have lieen taken 

 there within coiuparatively recent years — the earlier records are 

 not available. During the writer's visit to Guadelouite Island, in 

 ]S(;2. straggling fur seals were observed about the inland, and 

 specimens obtained which i)roved the s])ecies to be new to science. 

 It is possible that there is a sufficient renmant to warr.inl the 

 belief that the race could be reestablished if the islands were 

 properlv protected by the (lo\ernment of Mexico. The \alue of 

 fur-seal skins taken in tropical or senii-tn-pical localities is small 

 as compared with those from cold climates. 



Lobos Seal. — In all the history of Antarctic sealing tlu're is 

 but one chapter of wise management and thought for the future: 

 The riovernment of Uruguay has. throughout all these years. 

 carcfuUv preserved the fur seal rookeries of Lobos Island, at the 

 mouth of the La Plata River, inhabitecl by . I rcf oci' filial iis iiiislrtilis. 

 These small rookeries illustrate the good resulting from the care- 

 ful ])rotection of fur seals upon tluir breeding grouiuls. tdm- 

 mercial sealing was carried on at I.oIk.s UJaud jirioi- to iSjo. 

 The lessees of the island, opciatmg under the ducrtiou oi the 

 riovcrnment of I 'ruguay, placed ui)on the London niarket. from 

 1873 to i<;(J4. .V7'^33 sl<iiis, or an averagi' of ovir i^^.ooo a ye.ir, 

 worth in 1901. $100,000. All these wire (Urixid from a single 



