GREAT GREY KANGAROO, 87 
Australia, except the extreme north. In Tasmania it is replaced by 
the variety, /ulginosus. In April, 1893, the Government of South 
Australia proclaimed an extensive kangaroo district, in which kan- 
garoos must not be destroyed for three years from that date. The 
district comprises the lands of five counties on the west coast. 
AUSTRALIAN SEA Bear—Otaria cinerea. 
Introduction,—Collins, in 1798, when his account of New South 
Wales was published, mentions that ‘‘ The rocks towards the sea 
were covered with fur-seals of great beauty, of a species which 
seemed to approach nearest to that known to naturalists as the 
Falkland Island seal.” Professor McCoy having thought it 
desirable to visit the locality, where the French voyagers with Quoy 
and Gaimard during the voyage of the Astrolabe,” found the type 
specimen of this species, still in the Paris museum, went in a small 
steamer from Phillip Island to the smaller island on which these 
seals abound in the breeding season. On approaching the rocky 
coast, he could make out with a binocular, that the greater number 
of what looked like brown, bare, rounded rocks on the island were 
really seals, On the steam whistle being blown, they all started up 
and plunged into the sea, except a few large males, which stood 
their ground, well raised up on their bent fin-like legs, with their 
broad breast to the foe, and head raised, threateningly showing 
their teeth, and erecting the hair of the neck, like a short mane. 
After a little while, scores of the females and the younger males 
came swimming out to the vessel to look at it, raising their kind, 
intelligent, good-humoured, dog-like heads, with beautiful large, 
brown, soft eyes, looking like large retriever dogs with the pleased 
friendly expression, they wear, when approaching their masters. 
The services of an old sealer, who lived on Phillip Talat had been 
secured ; the company landed on the small island, on the first calm 
evening. All the seals at once took to the water, the party passed 
the night in one of the caves found there. The seals came back to 
the island at night to rest ; the sealers having emerged quietly from 
their place of concealment, before daylight, and being armed with 
heavy rifles, shot a fine old male, one adult female, and a young 
one. These having been skinned, were stuffed and mounted in Mel- 
bourne by taxidermists, in the attitude of life, as when surprised on 
the island, and placed in the National museum. 
Description.—The length of an adult male is about 7 feet, of a 
female 54 feet. They are known by the remarkable appearance of 
small external ears, in which respect they are unlike the sea leopard. 
They differ also from the true seals in the forward direction of the 
hind limbs, when at rest, and in their raising themselves clear of 
the ground on them, and the anterior limbs, when walking on land. 
Dr. Gray, of the British museum, says ‘‘ It is the character of the 
eared seals to have a very close under fur between the roots of the 
longer or more rigid hairs.” They are therefore called fur-seals by 
