MAKING THE FUR SEAL ABUNDANT 
resorting to land is in itself no small ac- 
complishment for air-breathing animals. 
The females, leaving the islands in No- 
vember, go further south than any other 
members of the herd, and in December 
appear off southern California, where 
they remain until March. ‘They then be- 
gin their long return journey, reaching 
the islands early in June. 
Within two days of their arrival on 
the rookeries the cows give birth to their 
pups. Not until ten or twelve days have 
elapsed do they return to the water or 
take any food. Then, after washing and 
playing near the islands, they make their 
first long trip to the feeding grounds, 
coming back to the rookeries after three 
er four days. Thereafter throughout the 
season the cows make regular feeding 
trips at intervals of five to ten days. 
The seals subsist chiefly on squid, but 
also on herring, smelt, salmon, pollock, 
and other kinds of fish, which are caught 
and eaten in the water. “They have pro- 
digious appetites and gorge themselves 
whenever the opportunity comes. 
It is a curious fact that the seals 
should have made their summer home in 
the midst of a section of sea singularly 
deficient in fish life. In early times the 
food requirements of the herd amounted 
to a number of millions of pounds of 
squid and fish daily, and even at present 
the needs are enormous; but the nearest 
feeding grounds lie 100 miles away and 
the most remote fully 200 miles distant, 
on the submerged plateaus and islands, 
known as banks, situated on the north 
side of the Aleutian chain. 
The bachelor seals, having no respon- 
sibilities and cares, require less food than 
the mother seals and make less frequent 
and less expeditious trips to the feeding 
grounds, and pass much of their time 
sleeping on land or playing in the water 
near the shores. 
The old bulls, however, have the most 
extraordinary vitality. Arriving on the 
islands about the first of May, they re- 
main constantly on land until the last of 
July or the early part of August without 
eating a single thing or even drinking, 
but living on the great amount of fat 
1145 
they have stored up while at sea. During 
all this time they maintain most vigilant 
watch over their harem, and are always 
ready to repel invaders, whether human 
or others, and to fight their rivals to a 
finish. 
THE ROOKERIES 
Certain rocky beaches and rocky hill- 
sides along the water front have from 
immemorial times been resorted to by 
the fur seals for breeding purposes. ‘The 
favorite type of rookery ground has a 
moderate slope with coarse rock and a 
beach of shingle or wave-worn boulders. 
Here the adults crowd together in dense 
masses and here the pups are brought 
forth. 
In early Russian days the Pribilof 
rookeries received distinguishing names, 
which have been used to the present time. 
All of the rookeries now occupy much 
less space than formerly, because of the 
depletion of the herd and the tendency 
of the remnants to maintain the same 
density of formation that was necessary 
in pristine times. The ratio between the 
size of the rookeries and the area of the 
rookery ground is a good criterion of the 
condition of the herd. The tremendous 
disparity in recent years graphically tells 
the pitiful tale of the seals and suggests 
the great possibilities of the present ef- 
forts to replenish the herd. 
In close proximity to the rookeries 
proper are the “hauling grounds,” where 
the young males up to five years of age 
congregate. These grounds are usually 
flat, sandy beaches or elevated plats in 
the rear of the rookeries. The strict dis- 
cipline of the harems does not permit the 
intrusion of the young males, and sum- 
mary ejection awaits the luckless bache- 
lors which, on their way to and from the 
water, fail to keep on the outskirts of the 
harems or to observe the neutral run- 
ways that are maintained between the 
harems. 
The older males, up to seven years, do 
not ordinarily have harems, but lead a 
solitary existence on the water front or 
on the outskirts of the harems. They 
have frequent fights with the harem mas- 
