12 



TESTIMONY 



(liencl.ed islands are tlie elioseii resort of the fnr-beariiiff seal (CaUo- 

 rhmusursuius). The more jaggetl and irro.i.ular the lavafraomeiits that 

 cover the shore, the more continuous the drenchinji- they receive from 

 the moisture-laden atmosphere, the better the seals seem to like it 

 JN either froin personal observation, from inquiries of the natives on the 

 islands and the villages of the Aleutian chain, nor from questiouinff 

 seafaring men, who, by opportunity for observation and general intel- 

 ligence, were competent to inform me, could I learn of any other land 

 area ever having been selected by this herd of fur-seal for its residence 

 and tor the perpetuation of its species. 

 I learned tliat fur-seals of the species CaUorMnns ursinus do breed 

 ^' , , '"^"f^ ^^"1 ^"t at the Commander Islands and Kobbin 

 and Kobbin Reef. -Ktci, Dut tUc Statements made to me were unanimous 

 .1-1 A- ^- *^';^^tliey are a separate herd, the pelt of Avhich is 

 readily distinguishable trom that of the Pribilof herd, and that the 

 two herds do not intermingle. 



As a result of the volcanic origin of tlie islands their shores are, witli 

 Kookeries. f^^^^ oxccptions, either made u]) of bowlder-strewn 



^i- nil .J n. fi ^^^''-^^^^^'^^^oviiOYf^iyilhy jagged fragments of basalt 

 ot all sizes, the sharp edges ot whicli are only slightly worn by the 

 seals' flippers or more completely rounded by the waves at the w-iter's 

 fS.A J^f ^^re 'I few true sand beaches; occasional level areas are 

 tound at the back of the rookeries, and in some places between the 

 rock masses comparatively smooth interspaces occur, but' even the 

 leve portions referred to must be reached by crossing a wide belt of 

 bowlders of all sizes that have been pushed landward by the waves 

 aiid by the ice which annually surrounds th^ islands. It is upon such 

 shores that the seal "rookeries" are located. Of the ruggedness of 

 these shores or of the irregularity and confusion of the Lava blocks 

 that cover them it is diflicnlt to form a picture, but it is in a measure 

 indicated in the accompanying photographs. 



A rookery thus ])resents two distinct features structurally, while 

 Breeding and haul- ^.^o'l'/./f^ fandpoiut of the Seal life thereo.i there are 

 ing grounds. agaiu the two wellrecognized divisions of "breed i no- 



grounds" and "hauling grounds." The word "rook- 

 ery' IS a general one and includes the specitic terms "breeding grounds" 

 and "hauling grounds." "*' 



^ In general and by preference the more rocky areas are selected by 

 tlie temales as "breeding grounds," and here, of course, the breeding 

 bulls aie tound; while the young, immature males or bachelor seals are 

 relegated to the adjacent sandy shores or smoother spaces at the rear 

 ot the rookeries for their "hauling grounds." 



Over these masses of rock the females scramble and stumble during the 

 entire breeding season, and in maintaining the control of his household 

 tlie bull dashes here and there, striking repeatedly against the sharp 

 edges ot the rocks with a force that to the onlooker would seem to 

 threaten his life. 



At no time during 1891 was there other than the greatest care exer- 

 Manngen.ent of. ^^^^^^ i^ protcctiug thc breeding grounds from intrusion 

 or molestation, precautions being taken that to a novice 

 would seem excessive; nor could 1 find by the most diligent inquiry 

 among the natives that there had been any deviation from these rules 

 Fince the Ainerican occupancy of the islands, nor during that time had 

 tliere been the kilhng of a female seal save by the rarest accident. 



1 he "hauling grounds" of the young bachelors, which is usually 

 somewhat removed from the " breeding grounds," is the only portion of 

 a rookery upon which any intrusion is permitted. 



