544 THE FUR SEALS OF THE PRIWLOF ISLANDS. 



JULY 3. 



A count of Lukauin rookery made to-day shows 939 cows. The Amphitheater of 

 Kitovi has 362. The number of cows is therefore still increasing, aud the proportion 

 of arrivals outnumbers the departures, if indeed any great number of cows are 

 leaving. 



Under the clifl's at Lukanin a pup was seen to start up calling and leave its 

 harem. It roused np a sleeping pup at some distance away aud theu wandered off 

 past 4 harems, a distance of at least L'aO feet. It stopped occasionally to play with 

 pups. The second pup followed at some distance, going about half as far, and 

 entering a harem. The first pnp turned about, passed down through a large harenj 

 to the water's edge, and returned home by an entirely different route. The second 

 pup also got home safely. It is dilhcult to understand what prompted this wandering. 



A small animal already noted which looks like a yearling or possibly a small 2year- 

 old is in a harem of 16 cows under the cliff. She was alone for some time with the 

 bull, which afterwards gradually made up his present harem. The young animal was 

 observed to pass into a harem below and take up its place there without any attention 

 being paid to it. 



Mr. Chichester will photograph the Amphitheater every other day during the 

 season. These photographs should, together with the daily counts, show the condition 

 of the rookery from day to day. From i)resent indications it would seem as if there 

 was a gradual ascent to a maximum, aud then either a gradual decrease or else a 

 general breaking up. 



The Fish Commission has made arrangements with Mr. Chichester to duplicate 

 its regular series of rookery photographs. 



MR. LXTCAS'S NOTES. 



The first harem on Gorbatch lies beside the rock bearing No. 25, It has 21 cows 

 and 12 i)ups. A cow jjrobably from this harem is seen to enter the water and go out. 

 To the south is a harem of 4 cows aud 5 pups. Perhaps the missing cow is the one 

 seen to slip into the water below. With one exception all these cows are over 3 years 

 of age. 



There are 6 bulls in the slide, all without cows, though below them are harems 

 of the ordinary size. The bull with the scar above his flipper crosses over aud takes 

 his place on the shelf, getting as near me as possible. 



In the afternoon 1 spent some time in watching the harems on Lukanin and Kitovi. 

 Quite a number of cows were seen to arrive — 15 or 20 in all. The bulls do not seem 

 to be aware of the presence of the cows until they are close at hand, sometimes until 

 they iire actually in their harems. The cows come out at the easiest places and to a 

 great extent select their own harems, preference, as a rule, being given to the one 

 containing the largest number of cows. 



In many of the harems pups aud cows are equal in number. Pui^s are being born; 

 one recent arrival is firmly anchored by its placenta. Pups get knocked about by 

 excited bulls, but are uot seriously injured. 



By Kitovi is an old bull blind in the lett eye aud very timid. Can this be the bull 

 apparently recently blinded seen last year at this place? 



