294 WHALES AND DOLPHINS 



rear their heads vertically out of the water and seemingly peer 

 across the floe looking for food. Scott agrees with Scammon 

 in attributing to the animal a deliberate cunning and the 

 possession of singular intelligence. On the other hand it 

 should be remembered that the Killer is not alone in this 

 habit of pushing the head vertically out of the water ; the 

 Rorquals and the Grey Whale are known to behave in a similar 

 manner when their swimming space is restricted by the 

 presence of ice. Certainly in the whalebone whales there can 

 be no question of connection with feeding to make these 

 animals alter their normal manner of breaking surface; the 

 reason for coming up to blow in this way is undoubtedly that 

 it is the best method in the circumstances, and it seems likely 

 that the same reason accounts for the Killer's actions. It is 

 easy to imagine, too, that the bumping of the under surface 

 of the floe may be quite accidental, and not a reasoned sequel 

 to seeing a potential supply of food on the floe surface. 



The vigorous aggressiveness of the Killer is in marked 

 contrast to the defencelessness of the large whalebone whales 

 and, when stating that the former animal is of no commercial 

 importance, one might sometimes wish that the Rorquals 

 and Right Whales were imbued with some of the Killer's 

 pugnacity to make them less attractive quarries for pursuit, 

 and to render more likely their chance of continued existence. 



Genus Pseudorca. 



THE FALSE KILLER WHALE {Pseudorca crassidens). 

 Fig. 75- 



In the genus Pseudorca, as in Orcinus, there is only one 

 species admitted, P. crassidens, the False Killer Whale. It is 

 nearly related to the true Killer, but many external differences 

 distinguish the two forms from each other. The False Killer 

 is more slenderly built than the Killer and the outline of the 

 head in side view is more acutely tapering than in that species, 

 although in both it terminates in a rounded snout without 

 sharply constricted beak. In the False Killer the snout 

 projects a little way beyond the tip of the lower jaw. 



The dorsal fin is small with the apex directed backwards 



