‘The paws of these animals, though expressly
made for swimming, are not, it is evident, so truly
paddle-like as those of the Whale or Porpoise:
the anterior pair are plainly divided into strong
toes, armed with nails and webbed: the posterior
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FOOT OF THE SEAL. (d.) SKELETON OF THE SAME.
limbs are feeble; but the toes are still distinguish- able, and serve as supports to a large extent of web, constituting an apparatus admirably adapted for propelling the animal through the water, and calling to mind the feet of the Diver (Colymbus) or Great Auk, (Alca ampennis,) both as to appearance and position.”[1]
Several species of this genus inhabit the seas of our coasts, and are particularly abundant on the rocky shores of Scotland, and the west of Ireland. The most common is the variegated species, known vulgarly as the Sea-calf, (Phoca vitulina, Linn.) a name given to it from a fancied resemblance of its voice to the bleating of that animal.
The common Seal is four or five feet long; of a yellowish-grey hue, with dark spots on the back and sides. The body is plump and full, beautifully tapering; the head round, with a very short neck ; from the thick upper lip project, on each side,
- ↑ Martin’s Hist. of Quad., p. 96.
