# The Zoologist/4th series, vol 4 (1900)/Issue 712/Sea-Elephants on Kerguelen’s Land, Hall

Published in The Zoologist, 4th series, vol 4, issue 712 (October, 1900), p. 441–447
THE ZOOLOGIST
No. 712.—October, 1900.
SEA-ELEPHANTS ON KERGUELEN'S LAND.
By Robert Hall.
In the summer of 1897-98 I paid a visit, in the brig 'Edward,' to this island of the South Indian Ocean. I did so by the invitation of Mr. Hans Gundersen, and acted in the capacity of naturalist.
While doing research work I could not but notice certain habits in the lives of the enormous amphibious mammals, and a few general remarks thereon may prove interesting.
The southern Seals are not so strong in species as those of the northern seas. The distribution of the total twenty-five species, including a Walrus, is four in the southern hemisphere, and twenty in the northern. One is peculiar to both, and this is the one under present consideration, and specially called Macrorhinus leoninus. It is to be found in California, and is probably circumpolar in the Australis.
Certain of the Seals are very local, and have reached peculiar places on the earth. One is confined to the Caspian Sea, and ​another to Lake Baikal, each bearing characters apart from all others of the Pinnipedia.
A considerable trade in the skins of these animals annually passes through the sales-rooms in Europe, and Bears, Leopards, Lions, and Elephants are vernacular names with which the various markets are familiar. Seals are eared or earless. Of the former there are nine species; of the latter, fifteen species; and an intermediate mammal, familiarly known as the Walrus, completes the complement.
Kerguelen's Land is a large island of about ninety miles by forty miles, and full of fjords, on the coasts of which the Sea-Elephants congregate in number, more especially on the west coast, where they are secure, owing to its ruggedness, dangerous winds, and currents. It is thought they arrive to rear a family in August, and our observations lead us to believe the departure is timed for February and March. During these months they are very restless, and remain no longer the listless creatures of December. A Sea-Elephant is contrary in nature to a Sea-Lion, for, while the former on this island is docile and languid, the latter on the Aucklands is active and savage. The Elephant, on observing a stranger, shows a restless eye, but quickly goes to sleep again. You may then walk through a herd of fifty sleeping animals, and merely disturb one or two for a moment. These hot-blooded creatures vary in size from 6 ft. to 20 ft. 6 in., and we found a skeleton of a young one about 4 ft. in length. The largest were exceedingly difficult to handle; but, as the enterprise of our ship was principally a commercial one, the business faculty was quickly brought to bear upon any awkward and unwilling customer.
Many of the animals would weight approximately two to six tons. No five men could turn a large bull over without special levers, and it needed seven sealers to haul half a skin along the sand to the boat in waiting. As for dragging a whole skin, that was quite out of the question under the circumstances. For museum purposes we made a preparation of one, and this we feared would break the tackle while being drawn on board from the end of a tow-line. Its length was only 14 ft. 9 in., with a girth of 10 ft. 10 in. about the pectoral girdle. From shoulder to shoulder it measured 5 ft. 6 in. The circumference at the base of the flippers was 3 ft. 6 in.
​To the great bulk there was a mouth, with a breadth, at the angle, of 9 in. only, and a tongue (which we found later to be excellent eating) quite filled it. Dr. Stirling has this specimen mounted in the South Australian Museum. While the blubber ranges from 2 to 6 in. in depth, it varies in weight. Six men were employed in changing the position of one fatty skin while on the skinning-board. This is a fair example of a male, which is always larger than the female. The congregation in harbours was generally systematic. The bulls occupied one part of the beach, and the cows formed a colony in another. There were always several colonies in a harbour, and they seldom appeared to intermingle, The young were not numerous. They had probably set out on their southerly migration before our arrival on Dec. 27th, or were scattered promiscuously along the beaches.
It is the general impression that these mammals lie in their rookeries for days or weeks together, and do not feed otherwise than on their fatty tissue. With this view I do not altogether agree, for most of the Seals are daily to be seen in the water, either coming in with the full flood, or going out with the early part of an ebb tide. That a young Sea-Elephant, 6 ft. in length, can live a month on its own fat was proved by one we brought to Melbourne, and which was lodged in the aquarium, but died a few months later.
One day as many as eighty may be counted; the next day the same beach may only contain ten, with other heads poking above the floating-weed, and showing glassy round black eyes quite wide awake. Our men have often shot as many as sixty at one time, and found next day another twenty had come up among the dead, simply because it was their chosen lair. This species dislikes expending energy on land, and they will lie in a group of twenty to sixty in some grassy spot with a sandy landing. Some few will ascend to an inclined distance of one hundred and fifty yards, and there they are not so active as those below, and probably do not go out daily. The energy would be too much for them, as they are slow crawlers, using only two flippers, and the snake-like action of vertebræ and muscles.
The first anchorage of the brig was at Royal Sound, and before we removed from a beach of four miles in extent we had collected 426 skins. Our two anchors were lifted for a second harbour on Jan. 17th (Greenland Harbour).
​During the first day sixty to seventy were killed, and similar results often followed. To shoot more at one time was inadvisable. An average of forty per day was considered good, and this allowed time to ship and "speck," i.e. take the blubber from the skin.
The finest herd we visited just before leaving the island. In all there were twenty-four magnificent animals, roughly averaging 19 ft. in length. For the first time, in 904 Seals, I saw the rugged nose of "Anson's plate," figured in Moseley's 'Challenger Notes' (p. 201). The plate of Leseur, reproduced on p. 202 of the same work, does not quite agree with the animals noticed by us in respect to the eyebrow bristles. The "Elephants" here have no conspicuous eyebrow, but rather have the cheek-hairs more developed than this plate exhibits. Before introducing ourselves I noticed one great "Elephant" take a short cut over another, and a quarrel arose. Both growled and stood partly supported by their shoulder flippers. Another disagreement arose elsewhere, but it seems to me there is more bark than bite, as animosity is quickly lost in sleep. One unfortunate animal had a badly torn nose, in all probability a dental evidence ​of past troubles. One of the crew gave me a tooth some 7 in. in length, the greater portion of which lies within the gum (e.g. 4·9 in.). When disturbed the belching of each of these old bulls was objectionably strong, for it can scarcely be called a roar. So great is the exertion that blood appears in the pharynx, and this occurred when I was engaged near its head, measuring the trough in which it lay. This lair along the convex part part was 32 ft. in length, the breadth 7 ft., tapering towards each end. The depth of these, mostly dry mud holes placed among the grasses, ranges to about 2 ft., seldom deeper; but they were placed in natural depressions, i.e. extra to the artificial ones. Many of the troughs are continuous, and intersect each other, so that a large lair may appear netted, which is uncommon. This place soon showed an unfortunate change. Rifles were presented within six feet of each bull, and the bullet sped through the brain-box, partly flattening on the blubber of the opposite side. Now, slits with sharp knives are run dorsally in the long direction, and out rushes venous-like blood to stain the little bay in a few minutes. From one Seal some sixty fountains of blood rose in oblique directions to a height of two feet, and all from the single cut on the back. Against the sky-line this miniature double line of fountains looked strange, and the spray of a city corporation water-van is not to be compared to its delicate and coloured sprayings. In the viscera I was surprised at the length of the small intestine, which I found to be 255 ft. in length, and capable of rough haulage. It stood the pulling over the grass from the carcase with only a small distension.
The method of procuring "Elephants" is a simple, though not an easy one. Three boats, each with a crew of five men, row from the anchorage to the shore, haul up their boats, prospect the field, and, with four loaded rifles, drive the animals down to within a few yards of high-water mark, and shoot them. There they lie for the coming of the tide, and get anchored temporarily in a few feet of water. Some of the Seals give considerable trouble before they will leave the high lands (one hundred yards from the beach on a medium incline), and as many as three hours ​may be spent in annoying them with the lance before they decide to go. If the Seals carry their own skins down it saves much labour and time of the men. The boating is quite enough trouble to bear, as the harbour winds are treacherous and strong; so powerful are they, that I have observed half the body of a "waterfall" blown back many yards before it could leave the ledge where gravity was strongest. Should a gale prohibit the boats leaving the ship, the crew will sleep in during the day, and with the lull towards midnight leave for the scene of operations. Many a time they have had to row miles against a tempest to save being out all night, and many hours it has taken. Under such conditions boats have been swamped, the skins floated overboard, and a landing arranged for fresh efforts. I shall not be likely to forget one intensely cold night while going on board with my birds and cameras. The helmsman got a renewed attack of tropical fever, and, almost collapsing, I was given charge of the helm. For three hours mittens and oilskins seemed like miserable calico, and then I fully sympathised with the men who had their wellingtons partly filled with icy water.
Daily the boats wend their way in much the same manner, and in exactly the same way the skins are taken from the bodies. Roughly speaking, each skilful man can skin the smaller Seals—ten in two hours and a half, or fifteen minutes for each. This time is for animals which are not too large for a man to handle. The carcases in our takings were generally of large size. The following is a case of quick work:—After a one o'clock dinner (of plum-duff) the boats were rowed three miles. Seventy-two Seals were killed, and all but fourteen skinned. Twenty-three of the largest were taken on board, and the last was upon the windlass at 9.30 p.m. Two skins of fair size are enough for a small boat, or one of a large bull. The last trip in the above raid took two hours and a half in rowing three miles; this wasted time and much more was spent in endeavouring to get round a certain point. We agreed without a dissenting voice to call this headland Cape Horn of Royal Sound.
This uncharitable point is the type of many another. To leave a harbour for a second one is the event most trying to the constitution, for one never knows until the anchor is safely dropped where the howling wind will drive you. Altogether we ​tried six harbours, of which four were well worked. The fifth (Swains Bay) took us three days to enter, and, after being ten minutes inside trying to get up the channel, our clever captain put his ship about, and thanked his lucky stars he had got safely out of the treacherous "hole." Down this fjord the wind without notice struck the foresails, while the wind astern drove her forward. Here the trouble started, but fortunately quickly ended by good management and good fortune. Had we touched the entrance island the ship would at once have been broken into matchwood. From this place I carried pleasant recollections, more on account of the bold contour and strangeness of the island than because it pleased my friends to chart it as a tribute to myself. Strange as it may read, among the finding of shipwreck remains there were letters and bottles from a sealing captain mentioned in Prof. Moseley's 'Challenger Notes' twenty years ago. Capt. Fuller is an old hand at the business, and evidently has the indomitable pluck of the American in the making and losing of fortunes in rough waters! As for ourselves, we managed to quit the land safely on Feb. 18th, although for a few hours we could not get over a severe loss we made at the last moment. Having, on the 17th, killed, skinned, and anchored a batch of skins to the value of £250, all hands on board heaved anchors next morning to stand into a near bay to take them off. Two storms now showed their effects: one in driving all the skins ashore and burying them in the sand; the other in driving us off the bay altogether.
With a threatening sky our tight and dry little brig, the 'Edward,' now headed for Melbourne, and we started a direct homeward course of 3400 miles. This was duly accomplished in twenty-two days, and we experienced a phenomenal wind for the latter fourteen days, which was from the north instead of the prevailing one from the west, a circumstance of exceedingly rare occurrence.
* ↑ This animal was described and figured from the Falkland Islands in our last volume (Zool. 1899, p. 385). It was there referred to under the specific name of Macrorhinus elephantinus. In using the specific appellation M. leoninus Mr. Hall is in agreement with the late Prof. Flower, as pointed out in our pages (ibid. p. 387). Mr. Hall, in his opinion that the northern and southern species are identical, is in opposition to some other authorities. Mr. Allen, in his 'North American Pinnipeds,' treats the Californian animal as a distinct species (M. angustirostris).—Ed.
* ↑ In one trough there are very often two bulls or two cows, the broad part of one and the tapering part of another at one end, and the corresponding parts towards the opposite pole. This ensures the trough being well filled.
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