88 AUSTRALIAN ZOOLOGY 
the sealers, and are hunted for their skin as well as for their oil. 
Some members of the family have so little under-fur, when they arrive 
at the adult age, that their skins are of no value in the market for 
making articles of seal-skin, they are therefore called hair-seals by 
the sealers. The sea bear, so called from its gait, is covered 
with moderately coarse hair, it is about 14 inches long on the back 
of the neck of the male, and rather more than ? of an inch on the 
back. The colour of an adult is greyish dark-brown, somewhat 
lighter on the sides and smooth, of a darker rich chestnut hue on 
the abdomen; the tail, limbs and edge of the upper lip are the 
darkest. The under-fur is scanty, it is of a rich rusty chestnut; it 
is suft and beautiful, when properly dressed, and is of good quality, 
but old individuals have no under-fur. The anterior limbs have 
4 or 5 rudimentary nails; the hind limbs are bent forwards, when 
resting or walking, they have long nails on the three middle toes, 
and very small ones on the two outer. The body is tapering and 
the tail short. The naked margin of both pairs of limbs and the 
-nose are jet black. The young are blackish on the upper surface, 
and of a rich rusty chocolate below; they are darker than the 
adults, and look black, when wet. Dr. Gray observed that the 
under fur is entirely absent in the half-grown specimen in the 
British museum collection. 
Habits.—Seals go to the rocks on parts of the Australian coast, 
about the beginning of Oct., and remain there during the breeding 
season ; they have young before the middle of Dec. They do not 
breed till they are three years old. The female generally has one 
pup, but sometimes two. They select flat rocks, inaccessible to 
man, or, if not disturbed, a green sward a little inland. The males 
are very fat, when they first take to the rocks; if the females 
quarrel and fight, they restore order. Seals keep good watch, and 
care affectionately for their offspring; they circle round them in 
rough stormy weather, and protect them from any wash or sea, that 
may come over the rocks. If the young are washed off the rocks, 
the females follow them and bring them back ina rapid manner, 
A female has been seen to take a pup in her mouth, which had been 
washed off the rocks, and throw it ten feet high up to a rock, 
without hurting it. Out of the breeding season, seals go into the 
sea in the morning, and return to their resting place at night. 
When fighting, they strike each other like the boar ; their teeth are 
about 14 inches long, and cut terribly, making wounds from one to 
ten inches in length. If they smell man, they are off at once. In 
the water, they are as quick in their movements as any fish that 
swims: this power enables them to capture their prey, or escape 
their enemies—the sharks. The unwilling young, when full grown, 
are taught to swim by the female. The noise made by the females 
is like that of a cow, the male’s noise is guttural. His voice when 
angry sounds like ‘ oough, ough,” and ‘* yah, yah! when trying to 
pacify the females. ‘The pup bleats like a lamb. 
Pood. —Seals live on fish ; they eat leather-jackets, parrot fish, 
squid, &c. A sealer found a backbone in one 2) feet long, it was 
