204 DIVISION I. VEUTEBKAL ANIMALS. —CLASS I. MAMMALIA. 



Tlie fcire p.aw is more free tlian tliat of the eoinmon senl ; llic sliape also is 

 pci'uliar, a])[iroxiiii:itinjj soine\vli;it to a Imnian iiniid, luninn' the niiildle finger 

 tlie longest, and the thuml) nearly as short as tiie little finger. Tlie body is 

 long and rohnst ; the skin th irk, and in the yonng, is co\ered with soft 

 hairs, woolly nnderneath. Tlie eolor varies with tlie age of the animal ; the 

 young are dusky wliite underneath : tlie old are of a darker hue. Crantz 

 says the hair is hlaek, Init l>aron Cuvier asserts that it is gray, sometimes 

 brown above, witli a longitudinal streak of blaek forming a cross on the 

 chaufrui. 



Alth(jugh the home of the Great Seal is in the Arctic Seas, it is often 

 found in much lower latitudes. ]\Ir. IVnnant refers to one thus: "A gen- 

 tleman of my ae(juaintanee shot one twelve feet long on the coast of iSuther- 

 land." 



According to ilr. Edmonston, and some other writers, it is common to the 

 north coast (jf Scotland and the Shetland Islands. These seals, he tells us, 

 ditFer much from tlie common one. They associate in pairs, and the male 

 appears to be attached to a single female. They keep by themselves, never 

 associating with any other species, and shelter themselves in deej) and 

 almost inaccessible caverns. The joung arc brought forth in the months of 

 September, October, and Xovember, and when but a few days old, are as 

 large as the common seal at the age of several months, Mr. Selby remarks 

 that this species abounds in the Farn and adjacent islands, often attaining a 

 very great size, lie saw some specimens which weighed six hundred and 

 thirty pounds, and measured from ten to twelve feet in length. The females 

 ]iroduce their young on several of the outer rocks, where they suckle them 

 every tide for fourteen or fifteen days, when they conduct them to the water, 

 and teach them to swim and procure their food. 



j\Ir. A\'ilson found this seal among tlie Ileljridcs, where it is known by the 

 name of fojiroist. l^rom his observations of its habits, he concluded that 

 it was not so lively or watchful as the common seal, nor so easily alarmed. 

 Among the high dirt's, north of Papa-Stour, are extensive and profound 

 caverns, dittlcult of access, in the dark recesses of which this animal delights 

 to dwell. The most remarkable of these is Christie's Hole, which, in calm 

 weather, can be explored by means of a boat. A large arch first presents 

 itself, and after rowing through dark vaults, the light of the sun bursts in 

 from the lofty opening aljove. The boat then pursues its gloomy course 

 through another extensive perforation, which at length expands into an 

 immense caxern, where the light of tlie snu is wIkjIIv cxchided. In the 

 innermost dcjiths there is a steep Ijcacli, wliiili terminates in small dens, to 

 which these seals resoi't. It is customary for the inhabitants to go to this 

 place at certain seasons of the year, armed with thick clubs, and well pro- 



