THE BLACK-FISH. 373 



fish, but when it approaches land it devours any small fish. The manner 

 in which it feeds is, however, not ascertained. It is supposed that it drops 

 its lower-jaw till it makes nearly a right-angle with the upper one, and 

 then swims slowly along, its sharp teeth transfixing whatever comes in 

 its way. The stories that it can devour seals or dolphins are unworthy 

 of credence. It will take vegetable diet, and has been seen to swallow 

 fruit drifting on the waves. 



The Sperm Whale never passes the Cape of Good Hope, but does 

 pass round Cape Horn. 



THE BLACK-FISH. 



The Black-Fish has been separated from the genus Catodon because, 

 although it possesses the huge head and heavily -toothed ja>v of the 

 sperm whales, the spout-holes are removed from the extremity of the 

 snout, and placed upon the middle of the top of the head. These spout- 

 holes are separate, and covered with a common flap. The pectoral fins 

 are moderate in size and triangular in form ; the dorsal fin is long and 

 sickle-shaped ; the head exceeds one-fourth of the entire bulk. 



GENUS PHYSETER. 



The Black-Fish, Physetcr tiirsio (Plate XXVII) the only species of 

 the genus, is, when fully grown, of considerable dimensions, often 

 measuring fifty to sixty feet in length. 



The dimensions of one of these animals have been very accurately 

 given by Sibbald. 



In total length it measured between fifty-two and fifty-three feet, its 

 girth at the largest part of the body was rather more than thirty-two 

 feet, and as it lay on the ground the height of its back was twelve feet 

 The lower jaw was ten feet in length, and was furnished with forty-two 

 teeth, twenty-one on each side. Each tooth was slightly sickle-shaped, 

 and curved towards the throat. An equal number of cartilaginous 

 sockets are placed in the upper jaw into which the conical teeth are 

 received when the mouth is closed. The teeth in the middle of the jaw 

 are larger and heavier than those of the front or base ; some of them 

 exceed nine inches in length, and weigh more than eighteen ounces 

 when perfectly dried. The root of each tooth is hollow in the centre to 



