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The author spent two weeks in early February observing the breeding behavior of gray seals on the Basque Islands, Nova Scotia, the first such study earned out anywhere in the western Atlantic. The North American populations differ from their British counterparts in that they breed in midwinter rather than in the fall. It is suspected that other differences exist. By early February the bulls had already established territories and each territory contained several cows with pups. At least one bull attempted to keep his cows from entering the territory of another bull. No fighting was observed between bulls holding territories, but younger bulls were constantly challenging the supremacy of the resident bulls and several fights were observed. A peculiar rolling performance associated with agonistic behavior is described. A diurnal activity pattern was discernible in the cows but none in the bulls. The relationship between the cows and their pups is described, including nursing and play behavior. Copulating behavior between a young bull and a cow is described.

The main objective of this investigation is to develop a model for predicting the systematic temperature measurement error due to the thermal disturbance in the region surrounding the thermocouple hot junction. A parametric finite element analysis has been conducted to model the general case of a three-dimensional thermocouple installation inserted in a blind hole. The variables considered in this study are the level of the heat flux in the measurement zone, as well as the thermal characteristics of the thermocouple wires, the filler material (cement), and the solid material in which the installation is placed. Analysis of the results showed that the pattern of the disturbed temperature field around the thermocouple sensing element is critically dependent on the ratio between the thermal conductivities of the filler material and the solid material. The results also showed that a reduction in the temperature gradient in the undisturbed field results in a considerable increase in the partial heat flow into the thermocouple wires, and consequently a significant systematic temperature measurement error. The effect of the eccentric positioning of the thermocouple on the uncertainty limits of the measurement error was found to be quite significant. A generalized model is presented to estimate the measurement error for any combination of the thermocouple installation attributes. Experimental verification of some aspects of this analysis has been carried out using a well-controlled experiment in which the thermocouple hole is scale-modelled. Comparison of the test results with the finite element predictions confirmed the accuracy and validity of the numerical modelling and results.

A 4-week period, December 18, 1967, to January 16, 1968, was spent studying a colony of gray seals on the Basque Islands, Nova Scotia. Before hauling out on the breeding islands, the seals congregate on exposed reefs nearby, where they remain for several weeks. Once invasion of the breeding area begins there is a mass movement and the entire herd beaches within the space of a week. The first seal observed to haul out was a cow which whelped within 24 hours. The bulls take up stations almost immediately whereas the cows wander aimlessly over the breeding area until they have whelped. The spot at which the pup is born seems to determine the cow's station. For several days after the pup is born, the cow remains with it constantly; thereafter she goes to sea at regular intervals. For the first week to 10 days after beaching, the bulls exhibit no territorial behavior and it is possible the boundaries are not established until later. The resident bulls appeared to ignore each other and no fighting was observed.

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