THE SEA OTTER 219 



called jiya^°^ and cariguebeju;* and consequently this animal 

 occurs, if not in all, at least in most places on the western as 

 well as the eastern side of America. — Accordingly, my former 

 hypothesis would now also seem to be confirmed as a truth, that 

 the sea otters which in winter and spring time arrive in great 

 numbers with the drift ice at the Kamchatkan coasts have been 

 brought hither not only from the mainland of America itself but 

 also mostly from the islands in the Channel which the ice must 

 pass. For I have seen with my own eyes how much these animals 

 like to lie on the ice; and, although on account of the mild winter 

 the ice floes were thin and few, they were nevertheless carried 

 on them, asleep or awake, "^ towards the sea by the ebbing tide. 

 The sea otter is usually 5 feet long and 3 feet in circumference 

 at the breast bone, where the body is thickest. The largest 

 weighed, with the entrails, 70 to 80 Russian pounds. In shape 

 it resembles an otter, the hind feet only excepted, which are 

 smooth"" and agree in structure with the hind flippers of seals.** 

 The entrails are likewise conditioned as in the otter. The skin, 

 which lies as loose on the flesh as in dogs and shakes all over 

 when [the animal is] running, so far surpasses in length, beauty, 



108 The MS perhaps reads icya. Georg Marggraf (Historiae rerum 

 naturaUum Brasihae libri octo, in G. Piso: Historia naturaHs Brasihae, 

 Ley den, 1648) has jiya. 



* I am fully convinced that Marggraf's sea otter is an entirely different 

 animal. — P. [The Brazilian otter described by Marggraf is an entirely 

 different animal, as correctly surmised by Pallas. It is a river otter 

 known as Pteronura brasiliensis (Blumenbach). On Steller's reference 

 to this question in the journal see, above, p. 31 and footnote 57 on 

 p. 32. (S)] 



109 From "and although on account of" to this point the MS reads: 

 "and are carried, asleep or awake, with the few soft and thin winter 

 ice floes." 



"0 The Pallas version reads "glatt," smooth; the MS "platt," flat. 

 The MS is correct. 



** This is not the place to explain the relationship of the Kamchatkan 

 sea otter to the seal. With respect to the teeth, the feet, and the [other] 

 characteristics it is so considerable that this animal may be declared an 

 intermediate between seals and otters, almost more closely related to the 

 former. — P. 



