SEA COW

also called Steller's Sea Cow (Hydrodamalis gigas), large aquatic mammal of the order Sirenia that formerly inhabited the frigid waters around Bering and Copper islands in the Bering Sea. The term sea cow is also sometimes used to refer to other sirenians, the manatee and more often the dugong (qq.v.). Steller's sea cow was discovered in 1741 and was described by Georg W. Steller, who accompanied Vitus Bering on his voyage of discovery. The sea cow reached a length of at least 7.5 m (24 feet). It had a relatively small head and a broad, horizontal, forked tail fluke. The skin was dark brown, sometimes streaked or spotted with white. It was toothless and browsed on seaweed. The sea cow was avidly hunted for food and fur by Russian sealers. By 1768 the entire population, estimated to have been about 5,000, had been exterminated.