36 
FUR-SEAL FISHERIES OF ALASKA, 1909. 
Using the same methods as were employed in determining the aver- 
age harem on St. Paul Island, it is found that the average harem on 
North rookery, St. George Island, in 1909 was 34.7 (109 harems, 
3,784 cows). 
Had the pups on other rookeries on St. George Island been 
counted, a different average harem would have been obtained. 
While North and Staraya Artel rookeries have remained practi- 
cally stable in numbers for several years, the area covered by the 
breeding seals on Zapadni, St. George Island, is less this year than 
formerly, in addition to which only 1,100 cows were counted there 
at the height of the season of 1909, whereas over 1,500 were counted 
there on the same date in 1906. This shows that a decrease in 
breeding cows occurred there during that period. So also those 
counts of cows on East rookery have shown a steady diminution. 
If, therefore, the estimate of the average harem on St. George had 
been based upon counts of North and Zapadni or North, Zapadni, 
and East, it is certain that a different result would have been obtained. 
For the last three years, however, it has been the practice to 
count only Ketovi rookery on St. Paul and North rookery on St. 
George to obtain an average harem to be used for purposes of esti- 
mation. Should we discard this method in 1909 there would be no 
opportunity to make a comparison between this and preceding 
years. For comparison, therefore, the pup count of Ketovi on St. 
Paul and of North on St. George will be used to determine the average 
harems of both islands to compute the number of breeding cows. 
The average harems on those rookeries, as already stated, are 
Ketovi, 34.1; North, 34.7. 
It can thus be seen that the average harems on these two rookeries 
which have been accepted heretofore as typical of all differ but slightly 
in the size. 
NUMBER OF BREEDING COWS. 
It was found that there were 1,071 harems on St. Paul and 267 
on St. George. Applying the average harems above mentioned to 
the whole number of harems on the two islands, we have the follow- 
ing as an estimated census of breeding cows: 
Estimated Number of Breeding Cows, 1909. 
St. Paul... 
St. George. 
Island. 
Average Total 
harem, harems. 
Whole 
number 
of breed- 
ing cows.. 
34.1 
34.7 
1,071 
267 
1,338 
36, 521 
9 , 265 - 
45 , 786 - 
Total, 
