AMPHIBIAN MILLIONS. 285 



she will not permit any other one to suckle her. But the " kotickie " 

 themselves attempt to nose around every seal-mother that comes in 

 contact with them. I have repeatedly watched young pups as they 

 made advances to nurse from another pup's mother, the result in- 

 variably being that, while the " matkah " would permit her own off- 

 spring to suckle freely, yet when these little strangers touched her 

 nipples she would either move abruptly away or else turn quickly 

 down upon her stomach, so that the maternal fountains were inac- 

 cessible to alien and hungry "kotickie." I have witnessed so 

 many examples of the females turning pups away to suckle only 

 some particular other one, that I feel sure I am entirely right in say- 

 ing that the seal-mothers know their own young, and that they will 

 not permit any others except them to nurse. I believe that this 

 maternal recognition is due chiefly to the mother's scent and hear- 

 ing. 



Between the end of July and August 5th or 8th of every year 

 the rookeries are completely changed in appearance. The system- 

 atic and regular disposition of the families or harems over the whole 

 extent of breeding-ground has disappeared. All that clock-work 

 order which has heretofore existed seems to be broken up. The 

 breeding season closed, those bulls which have held their positions 

 since May 1st leave, most of them thin in flesh and weak, and of 

 their number a very large proportion do not come out again on 

 land during the season ; but such as are seen at the end of Octo- 

 ber and November are in good shape. They have a new coat of 

 rich, dark, gray-brown hair and fur, with gray or grayish-ochre 

 " wigs " of longer hair over the shoulders, forming a fresh, strong 

 contrast to the dull, rusty, brown and umber dress in which they 

 appeared to us during the summer, and which they had begun to 

 shed about August 1st, in common with the females and the "hol- 

 luschickie." After these males leave at the end of their season's 

 work, and of the rutting for the year, those of them that happen to 

 return to land in any event do not come back until the end of 

 September and do not haul up on the rookery grounds again. As 

 a rule, they prefer to herd altogether, like younger males, upon 

 the sand-beaches and rocky points close to the water. 



The cows and pups, together with those bulls which we have 

 noticed in waiting at the rear of the rookeries, and which have been 

 in retirement throughout the whole of the breeding season, now 

 take possession, in a very disorderly manner, of these rookeries ; 



