Length, along the back, from tip of snout to tip of tail.... of the tail..... Feet. In. .7 10 0 ....0 3 3 from tip of snout to anterior edge of fore-paw...3 4 of fore-paws, from base to extremity. of projecting membranes..... of hind-foot, from base to extremity.. of projecting membrane, (much shrunk,). Circumference of the neck, smallest part...... body before the fore-paws.. at the root of the tail... Distance of ear from angle of the mouth..... from tip of nose to the eye...... 1 1 of external angle of the eye to the ear..........0 3 10 of one external angle of the eye to the other....0 6 0 The following is the account of Pernetty, as taken from the animals he met with in the Falkland Islands: "The name of the Sea-Lion applies best to that species, the head, neck, and shoulders, of which are covered with hair as long, at least, as that of the she-goat. This circumstance gives the animal a resemblance to the Lion of the forest. These Sea-Lions are about twenty-five feet long, and nineteen or twenty in circumference, where they are largest. The teeth of the maned Lions are much larger and more solid than those of other Seals. I have now in my possession the tooth of a true Sea-Lion, the diameter of which is at least three inches, and its length (including the root) seven, and it is not one of the largest. We have counted twenty-two such as this in the mouth of one of these lions, and five or six more had fallen out. They did not project from the bone much above an inch and a half, and were solid throughout their length. Their solidity is almost equal to that of flint, and they are of a dazzling whiteness. Many of our sailors took them for white flints, when they found them on the shore, and it was with difficulty I could persuade them they were mistaken. "These Sea-Lions are not more savage, nor more objects of apprehension, than the other species. They are equally heavy and clumsy in their gait, and more frequently endeavour to fly, than to run at those who attack them. They live upon fish, sea-birds, which they catch by surprising them, and herbs. They bring forth their young among the rushes, which grow on the sea-shore, to which they retire for the night, and continue to suckle them till they are strong enough to go out to sea. At sunset they are seen to congregate together, and to land in troops on the shore, and then the cubs call for their dams by cries so like those of lambs, and calves, and kids, that any one might be easily deceived, if he were not aware of their true nature. "It was stated that their flesh was very good, but I never tasted it; but I can affirm that their oil is most excellent: it is obtained both by the assistance of heat, and without it, coming away spontaneously when exposed to the sun and air, when it is excel. lent for culinary purposes." We shall close these accounts of the Sea-Lions by a short extract from Captain Weddell. "Near the middle of the island of Santa Cruz, on the east coast of Patagonia, is an island which is called SeaLion Island, from the number of these animals residing upon it. This amphibious creature is most properly denominated, from its similarity to the quadruped of that name. Its face is not unlike that of the lion, but, in particular, a long mane, and a bold and fierce front, which it presents when standing on its fore flippers, bear a near resemblance to that animal. A full grown Sea-Lion measures eleven feet from the tip of the nose to the extremity of the tail, and eight feet in circumference; the difference from the Ursine Seal being only in the particulars I have mentioned. They may, indeed, be considered as belonging to a class of monsters of the Seal kind. They meet their assailants with great ferocity, but their capture is easily accomplished." GENUS ARCTOCEPHALUS. We have now reached the only remaining genus of F. Cuvier, the Arctocephalus, the cranium of the type of which we now present. The head is arched, and the muzzle retracted, the four central incisors are deeply bifurcated, and the lower are notched both behind and before; the molars have only one root, not so large as the crown, which last consists of a centre tubercle, with a much smaller one at its base, both behind and before. THE PUSILLA, OR CAPE OTARY. Otaria Pusilla.-DESMAREST. PLATE XX. Otaria Pusilla, Desm. Cuv. Ph. Pusilla, Lin. Petit Phoque, Buff. Loup Marin of Pagis. Cape Otary. THE above cranium, typical of the genus, was taken from the Cape Otary, and therefore we give it the precedence. The mutations to which this little Seal has been subjected have been unusually great and numerous; it was first the Seal of the Mediterranean and the ancients, then a native of the East Indies, and now, we trust finally, has its habitat assigned at the Cape of Good Hope. This species, according to Pagis, attains the length of four feet, and two and a half in circumference, although the common size is two and a half or three feet long, with a foot and a half in circumference. The head is round, and somewhat depressed, with a very short snout, and its physiognomy is agreeable. It has six incisors, the four middle ones of the upper jaw are large and forked, each having two lobes, the one before and the other behind; the outer incisor is sharp and pointed.* The whiskers are long, simple, and black; the ears are straight, and one inch and a half long; the neck is full, as is the chest; the inner finger of the fore flipper is the longest; the nails are almost imperceptible, hid under the hair, and so small as scarcely to merit the appellation; the hind flippers have three very distinct nails belonging to the middle toes, whilst those of the external ones are scarcely visible; they have also a projecting and divided membrane, and the under portion of the feet is naked and hard. Its coat is soft and glossy, of a brownish colour, tending to iron-grey; the head is deeper coloured; the under part, more especially the breast, is much lighter; the feet are black. In their disposition these animals are very timid Daubenton, Buff. xiii. 414. |