9D5 



CKTACEA. 



CETACEA. 



006 



portions of the muscular substance. It appears, he observes, 

 remarkable that the Narwhal, au animal without teeth, with a small 

 mouth and stiff lips, should be able to catch and swallow so large a 

 fish as a skate, The breadth of which is nearly three times as great as 

 the width of its own mouth. As the animal in which these remains 

 were found had a tusk of seven feet, Dr. Scoresby apprehended that 

 this instrument had been employed in the capture of the fishes on 

 which it had recently fed. It seemed probable to him that the skates 

 had been pierced with the horn and killed before they were devoured ; 

 otherwise, he observes, it is difficult to imagine how the Narwhal 

 could have swallowed them, or how a fish of any activity would have 

 permitted itself to be taken, and sucked down the throat of a smooth- 

 mouthed animal without teeth to detain and compress it. 



The Narwhal (Monoiion monoceroi). 



Narwhals swim with great swiftness. When at the surface for 

 respiration they blow repeatedly with considerable force, and then 

 frequently lie motionless for several minutes with their back and head 

 just above water. Dr. Scoresby describes them as often sporting about 

 his ship, sometimes in bands of about twenty together, often elevating 

 their long tusks and crossing them with each other as if they were 

 fencing. They often uttered a very unusual sound resembling the 

 gurgling of water in the throat, which Dr. Scoresby thinks produced 

 it, as it only occurred when they reared their tusks, with the front of 

 the head and mouth oxit of the water. Several of them followed the 

 ship, seeming to be attracted by curiosity. As the water was perfectly 

 transparent, they could be seen descending to the keel and playing 

 about the rudder for a considerable time. Sir Joseph Banks stated 

 to Dr. Fleming, who has published a very interesting account of one 

 in the ' Wernerian Transactions,' that a Narwhal stranded on the 

 Lincolnshire coast wag found with the whole of its body buried in the 

 mud of the beach, and seemed safely and securely waiting the return 

 of the tide. 



The blubber of the Narwhal yields a very superior oil, which, as 

 well as the flesh, is considered a dainty by the Greenlander. It is 

 regarded as the herald of the Mysticete, in whose neighbourhood the 

 former is said generally to be found perhaps from partaking of 

 the same food. When harpooned it swiftly dives to about 200 

 fathoms, and on its return to the surface is killed by lances. The 

 Greenlander drives them to fissures in the ice, where they come up 

 to respire, and kills them with harpoons, &c. The ivory of the tusk 

 is considered superior to that of the elephant ; it is very dense and 

 hard, very white, is not subject to become yellow, and is susceptible 

 of a high polish. They formerly brought a high price, and many 

 virtues were attributed to them : they still form a valuable article in 

 commerce. The celebrated throne of the Danish kings is stated to be 

 made of the tusks of this animal. 



Bduga Catodon, the Northern Beluga. It is the Cetia bipinnia of 

 Brisson ; Physeter Catodon of Linnaeus ; Delphinia leucat of Pallas ; 

 Catodon Sibbaldii of Fleming ; the Beluga, Round-Headed Cachalot, 

 Small Catodon, of English writers; the White Whale, and White 

 Fish, of whalers ; and the Albui Picu Cetaceus of Ray. It is known 

 by its white colour. When young however it is black. It is an inha- 

 bitant of the North Sea, and has been taken in Scotland. We are 

 informed by Mr. Whittle of the dockyard, Chatham, that one made 

 its appearance in the waters of the Medway in the spring of 1846, 

 advancing daily with the flow of the tide for a month as high as 

 Rochester bridge. It was at last shot near tlpnor Castle. It measured 

 13 feet 1 inch, and was all over of a most delicate primrose yellow 



colour. The dental formula was 



8 8 



One of these dolphins haunted the Frith of Forth in the summer of 

 1815 for nearly three months, passing almost daily upwards, and again 

 retiring with the flood and ebb. It was supposed to be in pursuit of 

 salmon, and after many unsuccessful attempts the salmon-fishers 

 killed it with fire-arms and spears. Mr. Bald of Alloa bought it, and 

 sent it to Professor Jameson : it is now in the Edinburgh Museum, 

 and formed the subject of the interesting observations of Dr. Barclay 

 anrl Mr. Neil in the ' Transactions of the Wernerian Society.' 



Mr. Neil remarks that the shape of this animal is very symmetrical, 

 suggesting the idea of perfect adaptation to rapid progression in the 

 water. " Its head," he observes, "is small and lengthened, and over 



the forehead there is a thick round cushion of flesh and fat : the body 

 contimies to swell as far as the large thick oval flippers, and from 

 that point gradually diminishes to the setting on of the tail, which is 

 powerful, and described as bent under the body in swimming, and 

 propelling the animal with the velocity of an arrow." 



In the specimen examined by Mr. Neil the teeth were 



6 6. 



The higher and arctic latitudes appear to be the chosen haunts of 

 the Bduga. They abound in Hudson's Bay, Davis's Straits, and on 

 parts of the southern coasts of Asia and America, where they ascend 

 the large rivers. Steller noticed them at Kamtchatka ; and in Charle- 

 voix's time they were numerous in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, going 

 with the tide as high as Quebec. Disco Island in Greenland is said 

 to abound with them, nor are they scarce at Spitzbergen. Scoresby 

 did not see them lower than Jau Mayen's Land ; he seldom observed 

 them among the ice, but where the water was clearest and smoothest. 

 They are described as not at all shy, but often following the ships, 

 tumbling about the boats in herds of forty or fifty, bespangling the 

 surface with their brilliant whiteness. The whale-fisher seldom dis- 

 turbs these beautiful creatures, for they are not only difficult to strike 

 on account of their activity, but when stricken the harpoon frequently 

 draws, and if it holds the capture is but of little value. Sir Charles 

 Giesecke speaks of their regular annual visits about November to the 

 west coast of Greenland, where they become a seasonable supply to 

 the natives when other provisions fall short. They arrive in herds 

 with stormy weather and south-west winds, and are taken with har- 

 poons and strong nets. Cod, haddock, flounders, &c., are said to be 

 the usual food of the Beluga. 



The White Whale (Beluga Catodon). 



The oil is reported to be of the best, whitest, and finest quality, 

 and of their skins a sort of morocco leather is said to be made, which, 

 though thin, will resist a musket-ball. The internal membranes are 

 used for windows and bed-curtains, and the sinews for thread. The 

 flesh, it is asserted, resembles beef, though somewhat oily. Hans 

 Egede describes both it and the fat as having no bad taste " when it 

 is marinated with vinegar and salt; " and says that it is then as well- 

 flavoured as any pork whatever. He declares the fins also and the 

 tail " pickled or sauced " to be very good eatiug ; so that, according 

 to Hans, " he is very good cheer." 



B. Kingii is the representative of the last species in the Southern 

 Hemisphere. It has been taken off the coasts of Australia. 



Neomerit Phocamoides is the name given by Dr. J. E. Gray to a 

 species of Dolphin found in the Indiau Ocean, the Vdphinua melas of 

 Temminck. 



Phoc(pna commimi*, the Common Porpoise, or Porpesse. It is the 

 Phoccena Ronddetii of Willughby, Delphimis Phociena of Linnseus. It 

 appears to be the QjiKtuva. of Aristotle (' Hist. Anim.' vi. 12). Pennant 

 supposes it to be the Ttir&io of Pliny (' Nat. Hist." ix. 9), which, 

 according to the Roman naturalist, bears some likeness to the Dol- 

 phins, of which he relates so many anecdotes illustrative of their 

 affection for man in the preceding chapter. It is the Porco Pesce of 

 the Italians (whence probably the English name Porpesse) ; Marsouin 

 of the French ; Marsuin and Tumblare of the Swedes ; Meerschwein o/ 

 the Germans ; and Llamhidydd of the ancient British. It is the most 

 common of all the Cetacea on the British coasts. It is black all over. 



The following is its dental formula: Molars, ,-- = 80 to 92. 



40 to 40 



Porpesses swim in shoals, and drive the mackerel, herrings, and 

 salmon before them, pursuing them up the bays " with the same 

 eagerness," says Pennant, " as a pack of dogs does a hare. In some 

 places they almost darken the sea as they rise above water to take 

 breath : they not only seek for prey near the surface, but often descend 

 to the bottom in search of sand-eels and sea-worms, which they root 

 out of the sand with their noses, in the same manner as the hogs do 

 in the field for their food." In fine weather they leap, roll, and 

 tumble in the manner so well known, principally in the spring and 

 summer, which is supposed to be their rutting season. They go up 

 the rivers in pursuit of the salmon, to which they are a deadly enemy, 



