North Pacific Fur Seal Convention of 1911

The North Pacific Fur Seal Convention of 1911, formally known as the Convention between the United States and Other Powers Providing for the Preservation and Protection of Fur Seals, was an international treaty signed on July 7, 1911 designed to manage the commercial harvest of fur bearing mammals (such as Northern fur seals and sea otters) in the Pribilof Islands of the Bering Sea. The treaty, signed by the United States, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Empire of Japan, and the Russian Empire, outlawed open-water seal hunting and acknowledged the United States' jurisdiction in managing the on-shore hunting of seals for commercial purposes. It was the first international treaty to address wildlife preservation issues.

The two most significant terms of the treaty were the banning of pelagic seal hunting and the granting of jurisdiction to the United States in managing on-shore hunts. In exchange for granting jurisdiction to the United States, the other signatories to the treaties were guaranteed payments and/or minimum takes of seal furs while the treaty remained in effect, subject to certain conditions.

The treaty also provided an exemption to aboriginal tribes which hunted seals using traditional methods and for non-commercial purposes including food and shelter. Aboriginal tribes specifically mentioned in the treaty include the Aleut and Aino (Ainu) peoples.

The treaty was co-authored by environmentalist Henry Wood Elliott and United States Secretary of State John Hay in 1905, although the treaty was not ratified for another six years. The treaty was signed at Washington, D.C. on July 7, 1911, with ratifications by each signatory on the following dates:

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