68 MAMMALS. 



suck. Frequently the young ones on these occasions crawl 

 up to the houses, and get fed with cow's milk, though, from 

 inattention, they rarely survive." 



" On dissection of males of P. vitulina, I have several times 

 been struck with the peculiarity of there appearing to be four 

 or more testes." 



In answer to some questions we put to Mr. Moodie-Heddle 

 on these notes we received the following answer : 



"The young seals were at a place where they were pre- 

 served, but the incident has happened elsewhere. The last case 

 when one was fed was two years ago ; but a young one was 

 going about the beach neglected by its mother last summer 

 (1887), and was more than once taken and put into the water 

 near the other seals by the people. Another got into a crack 

 in a rock, and had to be helped out by a man ; the mother 

 remaining in the water close by. The young one referred 

 to first was ultimately taken up here by a Mr. Curzon, who 

 was collecting insects, to whom I gave it, but it took diarrhoea, 

 and died about ten days after." 



" Seals know very soon when they are safe. I could get 

 within 30 yards of some where preserved, whilst the same seals 

 would not let me within 150 yards, when at another beach 

 some miles off. They actually got so tame with us that I have 

 known two young ones killed with stones by some navvies 

 working on the road; and one, half-grown, picked up asleep, 

 and taken into a ship's boat (it was floating asleep)" 



" They will stand a few shots, as long as none are killed, 

 without much alarm ; but if one is killed near a rock they 

 either desert it or are shy of it for some time. Seals not only 

 leap before bad weather, but call out, making a strange wild 

 sound at night in particular. They jump much, and pursue 

 one another at the breeding season, and appear, in copulation, 

 to thrash the water into foam." 



In 1883 we found this species of seal abundant at most of 

 the skerries lying inside the islands between Kirkwall and Kou- 

 say, and on one occasion counted as many as thirty heads up at 

 one time near the Taing Skerry, which lies between Gairsay 

 and Shapinsay. From being constantly fired at when ashore, 



