[15] COLLECTING SPECIMENS OF CETACEANS. 
dinary circumstances ; and what follows relates to the dolphins, por- 
poises, and other small cetaceans. 
The pelvic bones.—Care should be taken (as already intimated on 
a prior page) to obtain the pelvic bones or rudiments of the hind limbs 
which lie in the flesh on each side of and near to the vent. 
The pectorals.—The flippers may be separated from the shoulder- 
blade by cutting close to the body and laying bare the joint; they do 
not need any preparation. 
The flukes.—Each of the flukes should be cut off near the body (see 
figure 3) and thrown away. ‘ 
The hind part of the body.—The tail, from the vent backwards, may 
be cut loose from the body in one piece, and does not need any further 
preparation, except in very large specimens. 
The head.—The head should be severed from the body, care being 
taken not to injure the tongue or hyoid bones of the throat. 
Cm) 
Fic. 4.—View ot the under side of Fic. 5.—View of the upper side of 
the skull of a whale, showing the the skull of a whale, showing the 
position of A A, the ear-bones; B position of A A, the nosc-bones. 
B, the cheek-bones. 
The ribs.—The flesh should then be roughly removed from the head 
and trunk, the ribs cut loose at their junction with the backbone and 
with the cartilages of the breast bone. . 
Packing the skeleton.—The whole specimen should then be dried for a 
Short time and packed in barrels or other receptacles with a mixture 
of dry saw-dust and salt, and a card or other label bearing the sex, 
date, and locality. 
Tools.—All the operations referred to should be performed with a 
