25 



The north end of this room contains the seals and 

 their relatives. Here are to be found representatives 

 of nearly all of these forms to be found along the 

 North American coasts. The Pinnipedia, as they are 

 known scientifically, are carnivorous mammals adapted 

 for life in the water. Clumsy on the land they are 

 thoroughly at home in the sea, which they leave but 

 seldom and only for short times. Their food is fish, 

 mollusks, and crustaceans. Many of them are strictly 

 Arctic, while others are found well down in the tern 

 perate belt. 



Seal Family. — The family of seals and two sea lions 

 in the cases at the end of the room belong to the 

 eared group of seals, those shown all being confined 

 to the Pacific coast. They are polygamous, the males 

 greatly exceeding in size the females. This is we]] 

 shown in the family of seals, where the male is not 

 only about three times as large as the female, but in 

 life roars like a bull, in strong contrast to the female 

 which bleats like a sheep. 



Sea Lion. — The Stellars sea lion grows to be 10 or 

 12 feet long and to have a weight of from 1200 to 

 1500 pounds. The fur seals are the ones so exten- 

 sively killed for their fur on the Prybilov Islands } 

 Alaska, and which have nearly involved our govern- 

 ment in serious trouble. They are now rapidly be- 

 coming extinct. 



