Type.—Described from a specimen obtained at the Fraser River, British Columbia, probably on March 23, 1861, by C. B. Wood and another obtained by Wood at Queen Charlotte Sound, British Columbia, in 1862 (see [Scheffer] and [Slipp], 1944: 374); type in British Museum of Natural History.
Distribution.—Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan De Fuca and the coast of Washington, extending at times up the Columbia River to The Dalles. Has been recorded in Lake Washington, Seattle ([Bonham], 1942: 76).
Description.—Adults are about 5 feet in length and weigh up to 250 pounds; males are approximately a quarter larger than females. The hair seals differ from the sea lions and fur seals in a number of respects. The body is widest in the midsection rather than in the chest. The neck is short and slim. The eyes are large and there are no external ears. The hind flippers are not reversible but are permanently directed posteriorly. The pelage is short, stiff, and directed posteriorly. The ground color is silver gray or yellow; usually it is yellow, blotched and marbled with black, dusky or gray.
Hair seals range over the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans, occurring southward along the Pacific Coast of North America to central Mexico. Six races are recognized by [Doutt] (1942: 115).
The hair seal is the common seal in Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan De Fuca and on the ocean coast. [Scheffer] and [Slipp] (1944: 373) estimate that 5,000 live along the coast of Washington. Hair seals are social to some degree but are often seen singly. In Puget Sound, where there are relatively few hauling-out areas, they rarely leave the water but on the ocean coast they emerge to bask on the reefs. On Destruction Island, Jefferson County, V. B. [Scheffer] and I watched a herd of about 20 animals that lay on a reef exposed by low tide. According to the lighthouse keeper the reef was occupied daily by these seals. [Scheffer] and [Slipp] (loc. cit., p. 388) report herds of up to 200 hair seals. In Puget Sound 10 to 20 seals seem to be the usual number in a herd, but occasionally there are as many as 50.
Hair seals often exhibit curiosity concerning small boats; the seals lie in the water with only their round heads above the surface, staring at the boat for many minutes. Constant shooting has made them shy and any quick movement will cause them to dive; several dived instantly when I pointed either a stick or gun at them.
Hair seals are less spectacular than sea lions. When basking on rocks the seals are silent. When an observer is yet a long distance away the seals raise their small heads and remain on the alert. When they take to the water, they travel with a jerking motion. In the water one rarely sees more than their heads. When they dive they usually sink below the surface, never making the spectacular arching dive so typical of the sea lions.
At Useless Bay, Whidby Island, Island County, a herd of five or six hair seals was studied in July, 1936. These animals played and slept in the shallow water beneath a high, forested bluff and could be watched from the bluff above. The seals seemed to gather here in the early afternoon. Much of their time was spent sleeping on the surface with the body in a bowed position and drifting freely. Occasional waving of the rear flippers kept them from drifting away. They played a great deal, splashing, diving and swimming in circles or spirals. Occasionally one would dive down to swim slowly along just above the bottom. At times one would put on a sudden burst of speed, apparently in pursuit of some fish, rarely continued for more than 30 or 40 feet after which the seal usually rose to the surface to resume play. Never did I see one with a fish in its mouth and these pursuits, if pursuits they were, seemed to have been prompted more by a spirit of play than by hunger.
A young seal was kept as a pet for several weeks at Friday Harbor, San Juan County. It was tame and affectionate but decidedly temperamental. It demanded constant attention and whimpered, cried or moaned if left alone. It was more active by night than by day and made a characteristic mooing cry, which continued at intervals throughout the night. This habit led to its eventual disposal. The temper of this young seal was shown by its actions when it encountered strands of kelp while swimming. If the kelp strands held back its progress it would turn back, seize the kelp in its teeth and bite viciously. Never did it attempt to bite persons.
The hair seal was generally thought to feed almost exclusively on salmon, but the work of [Scheffer] (1928: 10-16) showed this view to be incorrect. Of 14 hair seal stomachs examined, all of which were full, only two contained salmon. In a later study ([Scheffer] and [Sperry], 1931: 214-226), only two of 100 stomachs examined contained salmon. Other food items were tomcod, flounder, sculpin, herring, shiner, hake, skate, blenny, unidentified fish, squid, octopus, shrimp, crab and starfish. In spite of [Scheffer]'s work, hair seals are killed at every opportunity by fisherman and boatman. Bounties were paid on their scalps for many years, and more than 1,000 bounties were paid for each of several years previous to 1930. Their small, round heads bobbing on the waves offer a poor target and many seals, after having been fired at, become extremely shy. They seem to be holding their own in numbers at the present time.