DISPERSAL IN FIN WHALES 361 



to and from sub-tropical waters have not been included in these time-charts, nor do they appear in 

 any of the other figures. 



Table 1 . Marked Fin whales killed in each group 



(See note, p. 377) 



In Figs. 2, 3 and 4, the tracks are largely concentrated in Area II, and this reflects the intensive 

 marking near South Georgia. In each of these figures it will be seen that the majority of tracks are 

 more or less vertical, which of course means that most whales return from their migrations year after 

 year to somewhere near the place where they were marked. Several striking examples of such 

 conservatism will be seen in each figure. For example, Mark No. 3204, shown in Fig. 3, was fired 

 into a whale in February 1935, in 63 28' S, 26 54' E and recovered in March 1952 in 66° 50' S, 

 27 38' E, i.e. the whale was found after seventeen years less than one degree of longitude away from 

 the position of marking. It must be remembered that the tracks merely show the ' resultant ' move- 

 ment between the dates of marking and recovery, and there is no knowing how the whale may have 

 wandered during this period. However, the rate of dispersal is evidently less in the long-term than 

 in the short-term marks. This phenomenon is further examined below (p. 367). In all three charts 

 comparatively few tracks cross the boundary of an Area. 



Fig. 2 shows the tracks of seventy-four male Fin whales. A few have moved between Areas II 

 and III, and three have dispersed eastwards from Area I to Area II. No recoveries of male Fin 

 whales have yet been made in Area IV, but this has no significance since whales of which the sex 

 is not known have been recovered in this area, and some may have been males. 



The tracks of sixty-three females are shown in Fig. 3. Five of these whales have moved eastwards 

 from Area I into Area II, and there has been movement between Areas III and IV. There is one 



