WHALING IN SCOTLAND 133 



on ist July got one with herrings inside, and from 28th July to 

 3rd August four with herrings. The Norrona station on 8th June 

 got a whale with herrings, mackerel, and a dog-fish of two and a 

 half feet in length. On igth July small herrings in one was reported, 

 and on i2th August another had fed on herrings. At the Alexandra 

 station the whales were entirely fed on shrimps till 24th June, when 

 one was got with herrings, but from 25th July to 3rd September 21 

 were more or less fed on herrings. Some of the herrings were of 

 most unusual size, larger than any the Norwegians or I had ever 

 seen, full fish, that is, unspawned. But to the north-east of Shet- 

 land, far from land, the whales had also fed on "small white fish 

 like whiting but thinner." This was also remarked at the Olna 

 station. It was also noted that at Iceland in 1904 whales were 

 scarce, in 1905 they were plentiful. At Shetland in the latter part 

 of August 1905 whales got scarce evidently because their chief food, 

 shrimps, were scarce, and they had to go farther away for them. Until 

 we get fuller information about the temperature of the currents in these 

 seas, and scientific dredging carried out by competent men, I fear 

 we shall never know more than the fact that, when the food of 

 whales becomes scarce, they wander long distances in search of it. 

 This would not only throw light upon the migration of whales, but 

 also upon the migration of herrings. 



GENERATION, ETC. 



A year ago I was asked by a distinguished authority on whales, 

 to try to find out how whales generated. Experienced whalers told 

 me they had seen two whales come together and splash with their 

 tails, but could not say what took place. At last the master of a 

 whaling steamer told me, he was convinced he had seen the act 

 of coition. He was following three whales all swimming together. 

 Suddenly the one in the middle turned to the whale on her right 

 side, and both turned over on their sides close together on the 

 surface of the water, and splashed with their tails. All was over 

 in a few seconds, and the cow gave two loud grunts and was shortly 

 after shot. Another question I was asked was, how does the calf 

 with its projecting under-jaw suck the mother ? This is more easily 

 answered. The calf swims alongside the mother and takes the teat 

 in the corner of its mouth and sucks thus. The teat is so short, 

 for the size of the animal, about five inches, that the difficulty is 

 obvious. One whaler thought the cow had the power of ejecting 

 the milk into the mouth of the calf. But in a rough sea this could 

 not happen, and the first seems to me the only possible way. 



All the Norwegians agree that these whales copulate and breed 

 at any season of the year ; in this they differ from the Greenland 

 Right Whale, which I am told on excellent authority, always 

 produces its young during the first three months of the year, the 



