GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF SEALS. 407 



away the "Sea Lions" so as to give more room, they have 

 increased in numbers, so that it was calculated there were over 

 4,700,000 on the islands ; and Mr. Elliot conjectures that this is 

 as many as that breeding station will hold. 



St. Paul's, which is the largest island, has a coast line of 

 42 miles, of which 16^ miles of sandy beach are occupied by the 

 Seals. To these beaches the old males begin to resort about the 

 middle of May, when, till about the middle of June, there is a 

 continual accession to their numbers, each on its arrival taking 

 the best position closest to the water which it can. By the 12th 

 of June all the best positions have been appropriated and fought 

 for by the strongest males, who are, as a rule, never under six 

 years of age. These stations are about ten to twelve feet square, 

 and are jealously guarded. Those who cannot keep or get in 

 the front rank take the next, and so on till the whole beach 

 is full to a depth of five or six rows, and each " bull," after 

 occupying a position, never leaves it an instant till the end of 

 the season in August, being thus three months without food, 

 and undergoing the most arduous exertion in maintaining his 

 position. 



Some of these " bulls" show wonderful strength and courage. 

 Mr. Elliot remarked one veteran on the water-line, where at 

 least fifty or sixty battles were victoriously fought by him. The 

 fighting is mostly done with the mouth, opponents seizing each 

 other with the mouth, clenching the jaws, each bite leaving an 

 ugly wound, shredding the skin into ribbons. 



About the middle of June the females begin to arrive, and 

 are received by the males with much attention ; but no sooner 

 is wife No. 1 fairly installed in the home of her master than he 

 sees another about to land whom he immediately approaches to 

 escort, and, whilst so engaged, the male on the station next above 

 his reaches out his great neck and abstracts wife No. 1 to be 

 placed in his own pen ; and this process is repeated until the 

 whole of the pens are supplied, averaging to twelve each. The 

 cows have one "pup" within a few days of landing, so that 

 family life on the beach is tolerably stirring. By the 8th or 

 10th of August the pups born nearest the water begin to swim, 

 and by the 9th of September the colonies are broken up. 



It will be noticed that only males of six years old and 

 upwards are able to keep their ground as beach-masters, and 



