HUMPBACK WHALE ; CALIFORNIAN GREY WHALE 253 



and repassing into and out of the estuaries. He describes the 

 animals' liking for shore water, and tells of how they would 

 go through the surf where the depth of water was barely 

 sufficient to float them : " One in particular lay for half an 

 hour in the breakers, playing, as seals often do in a heavy surf ; 

 turning from side to side with half-extended fins, and moved 

 apparently by the heavy ground swell which was breaking ; 

 at times making a playful spring with its bending flukes, 

 throwing its body clear of the water, coming down with a 

 heavy splash, then making two or three spouts, and again 

 settling under water ; perhaps the next moment its head 

 would appear, and with the heavy swell the animal would 

 roll over in a listless manner, to all appearance enjoying the 

 sport intensely. We passed close to this sportive animal, and 

 had only 13 feet of water." Frequently these whales are 

 known to get stranded and lie, apparently without injury, in 

 2 or 3 feet of water until the rising tide floats them off again. 



When swimming in open water this whale usually submerges 

 for about 7 or 8 minutes and, on coming to the surface, blows 

 two or three times between shallow dives before sounding 

 again. The tail flukes usually appear above the surface of 

 the water just before the whale dives deeply but are not to be 

 seen before surface dives. Andrews compares the action with 

 that of the Humpback, which it resembles to some extent, but 

 the back is never arched before diving as it is in the latter 

 species. The same author states that the speed of swimming 

 cannot exceed 7 or 8 knots. 



The Grey Whale's behaviour in the neighbourhood of ice 

 fields has already been mentioned (p. 233). In Scammon's 

 book there is a picture showing the animals thrusting their 

 heads vertically out of the water between the floes, and it will 

 be recalled that the Lesser and Common Rorquals do likewise 

 in similar circumstances. 



It was obvious that a creature with the habits of the Grey 

 Whale should attract the attention of whale hunters, and for 

 a number of years it was the source of a productive industry 

 on the Californian coast, though this was not the only area in 

 which it was pursued. All the way along the path of its 

 migration it was attacked and slaughtered, with greatest 

 thoroughness no doubt by the American whalers, but also by 



