35 



be practiced by lessees of the islauds, as it is suicidal in its effect and would injure the 

 business of taking seal skins on land long before it coiild in any way affect the life of 

 the herd. In all these regards the interest of the lessees of the islands must be iden- 

 tical with those of the herd itself, and therefore with those of the Government of 

 the United States. That the percentage of bulls really necessary for the needs of 

 the herd is a small one is well illustrated by the experiuients on the Commander 

 Islauds. 



CONDITIONS ON BERING ISLAND. 



On Bering Island for some years past no "killable" bachelors have been spared, 

 and the proportionate jiinnber of bulls is now very far below what it has l)een under 

 the closest killing on St. Paul. On Poludennoye (South) rookery, Bering Island, 

 for example, there were in 1895 five Itulls, in 1886 three bulls, to between 500 and 

 1,000 females. Yet this number, assisted perha})s by immature males, has been 

 shown to be entirely adequate for the impregnation of all females. According to 

 Mr. Barrett-Hamilton, of the British Fur Seal Commission, to all appearance every 

 cow on this rookery had a pup in 1896. The same observation has been confirmed by 

 Mr. Emil Kliige, :ind by Dr. Stejneger and Captain Moser, who visited the rookery at 

 about the same time. In his report on the Ivussian Fur Seal Islands (p. 64) in 1895, 

 Dr. Stejneger observes: 



''On that rookery (Poludennoye) the disproportion between the two sexes was 

 excessive in 1895. According to reliable information, the number of bulls on the 

 whole rookery did not exceed five. Judging from what I saw of this rookery during 

 two visits, I should place the number of breeding iemales at about 600, i>ossibly only 

 500. It would be a comparatively easy matter to observe this year (1896) whether 

 the number of ])ups born be very markedly small in proportion to the number of 

 females hauling out." 



On the hirger Scvernoye (North) rookery of Bering Island the conditions are 

 much the same, althougli the numbers neither of bulls nor of cows can be counted. 

 The number of bulls is, however, so sntall that the bachelors wander at will over the 

 rookeries. In the drives made from time to time, Itulls, cows, pups, and bachelors are 

 brought up together. In the harsher regime of the Pussian islands, the extreme kill- 

 ing of bulls as well as other experiments appareiitly hazardous have been tried, in 

 this case without appiircut harm so long as the breeding rookeries are undisturbed. 



On Medni Island, all bachelors that can be secured are killeil each year. There 

 are, however, two or three hauliuggrounds (Sikatchinskaya, etc.) which are virtually 

 inaccessible, and in these are reared what is consi<lered a superduity of bulls. 

 Although on none of the rookeries of the I^ribilof Islands are bulls as few as on 

 Medui, yet on the latter island 172 supertluous bulls were this year killed for leather. 



The proportion of adult bulls to impregnated cows on the Pribilof Islands is now 

 about 1 to 22 (idle bulls and virgin 2-year-olds being included). The average num- 

 ber of adult cows in the harems in July is 30. 



WRANGLING Bl'LLS. 



The evil effects of the overstock of males have never hitherto been fully under- 

 stood or estimated. The chief cause of death on the rookeries among females and 

 young pups is found in the wrangling of the bulls and in the struggles of the reserve 

 or idle bulls to steal cows from the harems. More than 10,000 pujis were trampled 

 to death on the Pribilof Islands in 1896, and about 130 cows were killed by the rough 

 seizure of the bulls in their struggles for possession. 



As the fur seal herd has year by year grown less crowded, this mortality has 

 probably never reached so low a percentage before. In the original or wild state of 

 the herd, when the number of adult bulls was nearly equal to that of the cows, this 

 destructicm must have been enormous, pi'ihaps approaching 200,000 each year. It 

 was undoubtedly the chief check on the indefinite increase of the herd. The death 

 of these thousands must have been adequate to compensate for the natural increase. 

 The removal of superfiuous bulls may also have the effect of relatively increasing 

 the food supply. 



AVAITING BULLS. 



Around each rookery, behind, before, and on each side, and on the rocks awash 

 on the sea front, there are now, throughout the month of July, several outpost lines 

 of idle bulls, active and pugnacious, which prevent any invasion of the harems by 

 the bachelors, although constantly attempting such invasion themselves. This con- 

 dition continues until the drives of bachelors are finished, the last week of July, 

 and prevents any possibility of female fur seals being drawn into the drives, or of 

 the driven bachelors escaping to work confusion in the rookeries. Later in the 

 season most of these reserve bulls succeed in forming harems from virgin 2-year-old8 

 and belated adult females. 



