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A dizzying, sensational show of wildlife met us at our landing site today. Tyuleniy means seal in Russian, and we immediately understood why the island is so-named. Hundreds of northern fur seals and Steller’s sea lions covered the beaches, their calls piercing the air. We saw bulls defending their harems, males sparring, other seals cavorting in the water, and pups ranging in age from hours to weeks old flopping about on the beach.

We hiked the island with our naturalists, observing the wildlife from blinds built by a small Russian research station. Birds filled whatever space the seals and sea lions left unclaimed. Jon explained the features that make the birds and their eggs adapt so successfully. Thousands of common murres and blacklegged kittiwakes covered the cliffs and flew overhead. Other bird species included crested auklets, Siberian rubythroats, and slaty-backed gulls.

We returned to the ship for lunch then sat in for Mark Brazil's lecture Beyond Blakiston's Line: The Natural History of Japan and Northeast Asia.

After a snooze I worked on downloading pictures onto the computer and listened and recorded Conrad Field's talk on seals. Then it was off to the daily briefing and supper.

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