24 8 DISCOVERY REPORTS 



Although the Discovery Committee is not at present planning further whale-marking 

 expeditions an attempt has been made to enlist the co-operation of commercial interests 

 in this work. In 1938-39 successful collaboration with the Reichstelle fur Walforschung 

 in Hamburg resulted in some whale-marking by the German whaling expeditions and 

 about 200 whales were marked during that season. 



I wish to take this opportunity of expressing my thanks to the many people who 

 have contributed towards the success of this work in the field ; first to my colleagues, 

 Mr E. R. G. Gunther, Dr T. J. Hart, Mr H. P. F. Herdman and Mr A. H. Laurie, all 

 of whom have been in charge of expeditions in whale-catchers from South Georgia or 

 in the 'William Scoresby'. I wish, further, to express my deepest gratitude to Capt. 

 Johan Endresen and his brother, Endre Endresen, gunners in the 'William Scoresby', 

 who so skilfully developed the powers of that ship for whale-marking, and to Capt. 

 Hans Olsen, gunner and captain of whale-catchers used around South Georgia during 

 four seasons. Finally, I thank all those members of the whaling community with whom 

 we came in contact on the whaling grounds, especially Capt. Abrahamsen, manager of 

 the Compana Argentina de Pesca's whaling station at Grytviken, who so facilitated the 

 work on the South Georgia grounds, and the many captains, managers and gunners of 

 the pelagic whaling fleet who gave such ready assistance, in so many ways, to the 

 ' William Scoresby '. 



EVOLUTION OF THE MARK 



There are many obvious difficulties in designing a mark suitable for such an animal 

 as a whale. It should be such that it will be carried permanently by the whale in a 

 position from which it cannot be dislodged by healing processes, yet it must not inflict 

 injury or itself suffer corrosion. It must be simple in form, so that it can be pro- 

 duced in large quantities at a reasonable cost and, moreover, it must be of such 

 distinctive appearance that the whaler, in the stress of his long working day, may readily 

 recognize it in the welter of blood, meat, bones and rapidly moving machinery among 

 which he toils. At an early stage in the Discovery Committee's activities experiments 

 were made with a mark resembling an enlarged drawing-pin constructed of silver-plated 

 annealed iron or, eventually, "Staybrite" steel. The point, about z\ in. long, carried 

 three barbs, and sprang from a disc if in. in diameter; it was inscribed on the leading 

 face with the legend, " Reward paid for return to Discovery Committee, Colonial Office, 

 London", and a serial number. This mark was attached to a long wooden shait, which 

 fitted, by means of felt wads, a 12-bore gun. When fired into the whale, the point 

 penetrated the blubber, the disc remained visible on the exterior, whilst the wooden 

 shaft became disengaged and dropped off (see Discovery Reports, vol. I, pp. 208-10). 



Many whales were marked with this form of mark, but not one has ever been re- 

 covered. Blubber is known to suppurate readily and it was found at the biological 

 station at South Georgia that a healthy whale is able to rid itself of deep-rooted para- 

 sites such as Penella (Mackintosh and Wheeler, 1929); there is no doubt that the mark, 



