﻿158 
  ALASKA 
  FISHERIES 
  AND 
  FUR 
  INDUSTRIES, 
  1913. 
  

  

  RETURN 
  OF 
  YEARLING 
  SEALS. 
  

  

  The 
  determination 
  exactly 
  of 
  the 
  date 
  of 
  return 
  of 
  yearling 
  seals 
  

   to 
  the 
  islands 
  after 
  their 
  first 
  migration 
  has 
  been 
  relatively 
  unim- 
  

   portant 
  until 
  recently, 
  when 
  charges 
  were 
  made 
  in 
  Congress 
  that 
  the 
  

   yearling 
  seals 
  have 
  formed 
  the 
  bulk 
  of 
  the 
  annual 
  takes 
  of 
  skins, 
  and 
  

   that 
  among 
  these 
  yearlings 
  so 
  claimed 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  taken 
  were 
  

   thousands 
  of 
  female 
  yearhngs 
  the 
  sex 
  of 
  which, 
  because 
  of 
  their 
  

   extreme 
  youth, 
  it 
  was 
  impossible 
  to 
  recognize 
  until 
  after 
  death. 
  

   All 
  the 
  natives 
  and 
  all 
  the 
  white 
  people 
  who 
  have 
  ever 
  been 
  engaged 
  

   in 
  the 
  taking 
  of 
  sealskins 
  have 
  held 
  that 
  these 
  yearhngs 
  never 
  appear 
  

   in 
  any 
  considerable 
  numbers 
  on 
  the 
  islands 
  until 
  after 
  the 
  1st 
  of 
  

   August, 
  after 
  the 
  annual 
  catch 
  has 
  been 
  secured, 
  and 
  that 
  when 
  so 
  

   appearing 
  they 
  are 
  so 
  small 
  that 
  their 
  skins 
  are 
  undesirable. 
  This 
  

   behef, 
  however, 
  has 
  been 
  based 
  wholly 
  on 
  general 
  observation 
  and 
  

   experience 
  which, 
  although 
  thoroughly 
  rehable 
  as 
  such, 
  was 
  not 
  the 
  

   result 
  of 
  such 
  extended 
  scientific 
  investigation 
  as 
  would 
  be 
  regarded 
  

   as 
  a 
  complete 
  demonstration 
  of 
  the 
  fact. 
  

  

  To 
  obtain 
  exact 
  knowledge 
  as 
  to 
  when 
  the 
  yearlings 
  really 
  arrive, 
  

   and 
  their 
  size 
  and 
  weight 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  arrival, 
  has 
  been 
  the 
  en- 
  

   deavor 
  of 
  the 
  Bureau 
  for 
  the 
  last 
  two 
  years. 
  To 
  this 
  end, 
  the 
  Bureau's 
  

   instructions 
  in 
  1912 
  required 
  that 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  seal 
  pups 
  of 
  

   that 
  year 
  be 
  permanently 
  marked 
  with 
  a 
  hot 
  iron 
  brand 
  on 
  the 
  

   head. 
  When 
  these 
  animals 
  so 
  marked 
  appeared 
  the 
  year 
  following, 
  

   no 
  question 
  as 
  to 
  their 
  identity 
  as 
  yearlings 
  could 
  be 
  raised, 
  and 
  

   observation 
  of 
  them 
  would 
  afford 
  exact 
  data 
  as 
  to 
  their 
  movements 
  

   as 
  well 
  as 
  to 
  their 
  weight 
  and 
  size. 
  

  

  Following 
  the 
  Bureau's 
  instructions, 
  5,529 
  pups 
  of 
  both 
  sexes 
  

   were 
  branded 
  in 
  1912 
  with 
  a 
  permanent 
  brand. 
  As 
  these 
  pups 
  of 
  

   1912 
  would 
  be 
  yearlings 
  in 
  1913 
  a 
  careful 
  watch 
  was 
  kept 
  for 
  their 
  

   return 
  in 
  the 
  latter 
  year. 
  In 
  all 
  drives 
  made 
  in 
  1913, 
  every 
  pod 
  of 
  

   seals 
  driven 
  up 
  was 
  carefully 
  scrutinized 
  to 
  determine 
  whether 
  any 
  of 
  

   these 
  marked 
  yearlings 
  were 
  present. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  drive 
  of 
  June 
  9, 
  on 
  St. 
  Paul 
  Island, 
  no 
  branded 
  yearlings 
  

   were 
  seen, 
  nor 
  any 
  seal, 
  in 
  fact, 
  small 
  enough 
  to 
  approach 
  the 
  size 
  of 
  

   a 
  yearhng, 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  usual 
  acceptation 
  of 
  its 
  size. 
  On 
  June 
  23, 
  

   no 
  branded 
  yearling 
  was 
  seen 
  and 
  only 
  seven 
  small 
  seals 
  that 
  might 
  

   be 
  classed 
  as 
  yearhngs, 
  although 
  their 
  identification 
  was 
  in 
  doubt. 
  

  

  On 
  July 
  7, 
  none 
  of 
  the 
  branded 
  yearlings 
  appeared, 
  and 
  very 
  few 
  

   small 
  seals. 
  

  

  On 
  July 
  24, 
  no 
  branded 
  yearhngs 
  having 
  yet 
  been 
  found, 
  the 
  hauling 
  

   ground 
  on 
  Reef 
  rookery 
  was 
  driven, 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  discover 
  how 
  many 
  

   if 
  any, 
  of 
  these 
  marked 
  animals 
  were 
  present. 
  The 
  seals 
  wore 
  sepa- 
  

   rated 
  into 
  pods, 
  of 
  perhaps 
  50 
  animals 
  each, 
  and 
  each 
  pod 
  was 
  care- 
  

   fully 
  examined 
  in 
  turn 
  to 
  ascertain 
  how 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  marked 
  yearlings 
  

   might 
  be 
  in 
  it. 
  

  

  