56 THE WHALEBONE WHALES OF THE WESTERN NORTH ATLANTIC. 



by Europeau and Americau authoi's, and opinions expressed as to their identity. 

 The text concludes with the chart previously mentioned, on which is indicated the 

 disti'ibution of species of Balcena in North American waters. The portion of this 

 work relating to the genus Bahena having been finished by 1870, Dr. J. E. Gray 

 took occasion to criticise it severely,' and in the course of his remarks touched upon 

 certain American species. He refei's to the objections which have been made to his 

 own method of ti'eating s[)ecies and higher gi'oups, and cites arguments sustaining 

 his position. He criticises the chart showing geogi'aphical distribution, above men- 

 tioned, and comments on the meagreness of the material on which Van Beneden 

 and Gervais based conclusions in some instances. He gives a list of North Atlan- 

 tic species of Bahena which he considei'S valid, and mentions the species of the 

 North Pacific wiiich have I'eceived names. Much of the criticism contained in this 

 paper was doubtless just or at least useful, but later studies have not on the whole 

 sustained Gray's contentions regarding species and other matters. The American 

 species cited are those of Cope, both Atlantic and Pacific, special mention being 

 made of Balceria cisarctica, Agaphelus gibbosiis, and Rliacliianectes glaucus. 



In the same year Van Beneden replied to the criticisms of Gray on the 

 Bahnnidm of the Ostoographie des Cetaces*^ and in tliat connection made the 

 followinii' I'emai'ks reirardinsr American material : 



"This whale [Nordcaper] which was hunted in the English Channel was the 

 first destroyed, and if by hazard it presents itself still in Europe, it is always in the 

 middle of winter. It was in February, 1854, that the last one made its appeai'ance. 

 We cannot say positively at what time of the year the whale which Piof. A. 

 Agassiz has prepared for the Cambridge museum was captui'ed, but we have 

 reason to believe it was in summer. . . . AVe shall have therefoi-e for this 

 second species, as for the first \B. mysticetKs], fixed winter and summer stations. 

 . . . The whale captured on the coast of America and to which Prof. Cope has 

 given the name of Balfpna cisarctica is, we believe, the same which foimerly 

 made its regular winter station in Europe. J)v. Giay does not share this opinion. 

 To solve this interesting question directly by observation we addressed ourselves 

 to Prof. Cope, who has kindly sent us from Philadelphia one of the eai'-bones of 

 his new species. We requested Prof. Reinhardt, of Copenhagen, to compai-e this 

 ear-bone with that of the skeleton from Pampelune in his museum, the only one 

 actually known in Europe. Although the fii'st bone belongs to an adult and the 

 second to a young animal, which I'enders comparison difficult, it is, however, evident, 

 according to Prof. Reinhardt, that there is nothing which would lead one to suppose 

 that the bones belonged to distinct species." 



Van Beneden closes with four theses, of which three are as follows : 



(a) " Thei'e exist two species of true whales (Right whales) in the Noith 

 Atlantic and on the coasts of Greenland, — one the common whale, called also the 

 Greenland whale, and the other the Sarde or Nordcaper. 



' Gray, J. E., Observations on the Whales described in the Ostoographie des Cetaces of MM. 

 Van Beneden and Gervais. Ann. and Mag. Nat. Hist. (4), 6, 1870, pp. 193-204. 



''Van Beneden, P. -J., Observations sur I'Osteographie des Cetaces. Bull. Acad. R. Bclg. 

 (2), 30, 1870, pp. 380-388. 



