TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION D. 807 



MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18. 



The following Papers and Reports were read : — 



1. On Coral Beefs. By W. J. Sollas, M.A., F.B.S. 

 A discussion on Coral Reefs was opened by the reading of this Paper. 



2. Report on Work carried on at the Zoological Station, Naples. 

 See Reports, p. 537. 



3. Report on Work carried on at the Biological Station, FlymoutU. 

 See Eeports, p. 546. 



4. Interim Report on the Index Generum et Specieruni Animalium. 



See Reports, p. 553. 



S. Afeiu Notes on Seals and Whales seen during the Voyage to the Antarctic, 

 1892-93. By Wm. S. Bruce. 



During the recent Antarctic cruise at least three kinds of seals were seen. These 

 were all true seals ; no fur seals were seen. They were the sea-leopard (Steno- 

 rhijnckus leptony.r), Weddell's false sea-leopard {Leptonyx WeddelUi), and a 

 creamy-white seal, probably the crab-eating seal {Lobodon carcinophaga). There 

 were two others, which were possibly younger forms of sea-leopard and crab-eating 

 seals respectively. The latter, instead of being white, was mottled pale grey, but 

 similar in form and size to, and often found among, the white seals. In December aU 

 the seals were in very bad condition, thinly blubbered and grievously scarred. The 

 females were scarred as freely as the males. There was no marked preponderance 

 in the number of the females. During January their condition improved, and by 

 February they were heavily blubbered and free from scars. Loving the sun, they 

 lie on the pack ice all day digesting their meal of the previous night, which con- 

 sists chiefly of fish or small crustaceans, or both ; the penguin is also occasionally 

 their victim, and I have found stones in their stomachs. 



By February the embryo is well developed, gestation probably beginning in 

 December, It is extremely regrettable that it was during this period the indis- 

 criminate slaughter took place, almost all the females towards the end of January 

 and February being with young. 



All the seals were found on the pack ice ; the sea-leopard was on the outer- 

 most streams, and was most frequently to be found singly, though two or three 

 might be on one piece of ice, but seldom more. Weddell's false sea-leopard was 

 very rare, only four of them having been seen. The creamy-white seal and the 

 pale mottled grey were in greatest abundance : these are found in fours, fives, or 

 even tens-— the greatest number I have seen on one piece was forty-seven. On 

 one occasion we found some seals on a tilted berg ; so high was the ledge above the 

 water-level that our men with difficulty clambered up and secured their prey. 

 This illustrates their great power of jumping from the water on to the ice. I bave 

 seen them rising about 9 feet above water, and cover distances of fully 20 feet in 



length. 



It is of interest to note that we saw no trace of any whale resembling the bow- 

 bead or Greenland black whale (Balance mysticetus) wbich Ross reported to have 

 seen in very great numbers. There were, "however, hunchbacks, finbacks, bottle- 

 noses, and grampuses. 



