like footballs. The strongest "old man" drags the female Seal away in
his teeth, and plumps her down in his special part of the beach. Along
comes another big Seal to take her away, and the fight begins again.

Meanwhile, the younger Seals keep out of the way. Strange to say, the
fighting Seals take no food at all, though they are on the beach for
several weeks. A few stones is all they eat, though at other times they
devour numbers of fish at every meal.


EXERCISES

1. How could you tell the Sea-lion from the real Seal? 2. Where are the
Seal "rookeries"? What happens there in the springtime? 3. Why is the
Sea-elephant so named?



LESSON IV

SOME STRANGE NURSERIES

As a rule, nests or nurseries are unknown in the world of fishes. They
lay their eggs and leave them; and the young ones have to fight their
own battles, in a sea full of fierce and hungry enemies. Indeed, it
often happens that a parent fish is eager to make a meal of its own
children!

The Codfish lays about nine million eggs! You would hardly expect the
female Codfish to make a nursery for such a family! She would be much