388 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. I. No. 14. 



away from most Americans who read it for 

 the first time, but a careful perusal of the 

 context shows that our moose is the animal 

 meant. 



The hooded seal is said to be ' nowhere 

 met with in large numbers,' a statement 

 that will bear qualification ui view of the 

 fact that many thousands are sometimes 

 taken by single vessels at the Newfoundland 

 and Labrador seal fisheries. More than 15,- 

 000 were killed on the ice and brought to 

 ISTewfoundland in March, 1883, by a sealer — 

 the Proteus — which I accompanied as sur- 

 geon-naturalist, and similar catches are not 

 rare. 



In the matter of genera, the compre- 

 hensive groups of the past are commonly 

 used instead of the smaller groups of to-day. 

 The same conservatism characterizes the 

 treatment of species — perhaps a good fault 

 in a popular work, though one that can be 

 carried too far — as when a dozen skunks 

 are lumped under a single name, and the 

 most specialized of our true foxes is left out. 



The author seems to be constitutionally 

 averse to the recognition of American spe- 

 cies as distinct from their European repre- 

 sentatives. This is shown by his treatment 

 of our wolf, red fox, lynx, wolverine, marten 

 and weasels. Even in the case of the mruk 

 the opinion is expressed that the American 

 and European animals are ' mere local 

 varieties of a single species.' The only 

 explanation of such statements, from a man 

 of Lydekker's experience in studying fossil 

 mammals, is that he has not personally 

 compared the skulls and teeth of the Ameri- 

 can and European forms. The number of 

 American species is reduced out of all pro- 

 portion to the sharpness of their characters 

 or the size of the areas they inhabit. Thus, 

 while three martens are accorded specific 

 rank for Eurasia, only one is allowed for 

 America, and it is given as doubtfully dis- 

 tinct. It should be stated, however, that 

 no European collection of mammals con- 



tains more than a fraction of our species ; 

 hence it is not so surprising that a foreign 

 author should fail to appreciate their char- 

 acters. 



The common skunk of New England is 

 said to range from Hudson Bay to Guate- 

 mala, but it does not reach even the South- 

 ern United States. Again, skunks are said 

 to be good climbers, but neither Mephitis 

 nor Conepatus can climb trees — the ability 

 to do this being limited to the agile weasel- 

 like members of the genus Spilogale. 



The article on the fur seal is full of mis- 

 statements and savors too strongly of a po- 

 litical argument from the British side of 

 the case. The number of fur-seals killed 

 at the Pribilof Islands each year is said to 

 be ' limited to 100,000,' and it is implied 

 that the number actually killed is still 

 larger. As a matter of fact, 100,000 have 

 not been killed since 1889, while the num- 

 ber killed at the islands since 1890 is as fol- 

 lows: 1890, 25,701; 1891, 14,406; 1892, 

 7,509 ; 1893, 7,390 ; 1894, 15,033. 



"We are told that the seals taken at sea 

 (by pelagic sealers) ' appear to be exclus- 

 ively young males or barren females.' In 

 reality the great majority of these seals are 

 breeding females. The author's ideas of 

 humanity are simply past comprehension. 

 He says : " Of the two methods of sealing, 

 the shooting in the open sea is decidedly to 

 be preferred on humanitarian grounds, more 

 especially if it be true, as asserted, that on 

 the Pribiloffs a considerable number of 

 breeding female seals are killed before their 

 cubs are old enough to shift for them- 

 selves." No female seals are ever killed on 

 the islands except by accident — possibly one 

 in many thousands — while in the open sea, 

 as already stated, the great majority are fe- 

 males. Of these females, those killed on 

 their way to the islands in spring are heavy 

 with young, and those killed in Bering Sea 

 in summer are nursing; so two lives are 

 sacrificed for every one taken. Ever since 



