HUMPBACK WHALE ; CALIFORNIAN GREY WHALE 245 



The converse happens in the case of the False Killer Whale, a 

 typical oceanic species, hundreds of the animals sometimes 

 getting into difficulties in shallow water. A noteworthy 

 stranding on the British coast, at an earlier date, was the 

 Tay Whale, a Humpback which haunted the Firth of Tay 

 for about six weeks in 1866 before it was harpooned. It 

 was the subject of a detailed anatomical description by Sir 

 John Struthers. Allen, referring to the Humpback's coast- 

 frequenting habits, says that it will enter harbours and even 

 go a little way up the mouths of large rivers, but perhaps those 

 which visited Nantucket and Newport — harbours famous in 

 the history of American whaling — may be credited with 

 greater courage than the rest of their fellows, described as 

 " neither very timorous nor very fierce ". 



The food of the Humpback consists chiefly of the same kinds 

 of krill as are eaten by the Rorquals, but in addition it consumes 

 capelin and probably other small fishes as well. Allen states 

 that there is no evidence of herring being included in its diet, 

 and mentions as exceptional a report of a Humpback' having 

 a great quantity of codfish in its stomach. Another instance, 

 of a Humpback which had swallowed six cormorants and had a 

 seventh in its throat, can probably be explained in the same 

 way as the penguins associated with Bryde's Whale. 



In both northern and southern hemispheres winter is the 

 time of calving and pairing, and for these purposes the animals 

 migrate into warmer waters. In the north the principal 

 pairing period is in April, and in the south September. 

 Scammon, in ' The Marine Mammals of the North- Western 

 Coast of North America ', describes the behaviour of Hump- 

 backs at this time : "In the mating season the Humpbacks 

 are noted for their amorous antics. At such times their 

 caresses are of the most amusing and novel character, and 

 these performances have doubtless given rise to the fabulous 

 tales of the swordfish and thresher attacking whales. When 

 lying by the side of each other the megapteras frequently 

 administer alternate blows with their long fins, which love pats 

 may, on a still day, be heard at a distance of miles. They also 

 rub each other with these same huge and flexible arms, rolling 

 occasionally from side to side and indulging in other gambols 

 which can easier be imagined than described." The calves 



