Eared Hair Seals or Sea Lions. 223 



EARED HAIR SEALS 



The Patagonia Sea Lion was met with by ^Magellan as 

 early as 1579, and was the first species to be exhibited 

 alive in England, a specimen having been bought by the 

 London Zoological Society in 1866. It is found as far 

 north as the Coast of Chili on the Pacific side, and the 

 Rio de la Plata on the Atlantic side of South America ; 

 and as far south as the Falkland Islands and Terra del 

 Fuego. It is docile and clever, but very suspicious, sel- 

 dom leaving the shore line. It always selects isthmuses 

 and headlands where it can have an unobstructed outlook, 

 for its resting place when it does wander away from the 

 water's edge. The representatives of this species 

 are solitary in their habits, for even where a number of 

 families, of from six to fifteen each, are seen in the same 

 creek, it will be noticed that the individuals of different 

 families do not associate with one another. Their daily 

 occupation seems to be divided between sleeping and pro- 

 curing food ; at high tide they take to fishing near the 

 entrances of the fresh water rivulets into the sea, the rest 

 of the time they lie huddled together. The full-grown 

 males of the species measure about seven feet in length, 

 and are of a rich brown color. The young are of a deep 

 chestnut, and the adult males of a brownish grey shade. 

 The ears of this animal are smaller than those of any 

 other Sea Lion, and it is also characterized by the pres- 

 ence of a distinct mane. The profile of its head is nearly 

 straight. 



The Northern Sea Lion, discovered by Behring, in 1741, 

 is noted for its leonine expression and ferocity of counten- 

 ance. It has an entirely different head from that of the 

 southern species, having a pointed nose and flattened pro- 

 file, like the northern Sea Bear. It is the largest repre- 

 sentative of the Eared Seal family, the full-grown males 

 often weighing from 1,000 to ].300 pounds, and measuring 

 from ten to thirteen feet in length, and from eight to ten 

 feet in girth. The young are of a dark chocolate color, 

 and the adults of a golden rufous or ochrey tint, the shade 

 A'arying with the seasons. Its principal breeding places 



