CETACEA. 29 



Megapteron Americana, Gray, Zool. Ereb. fy Terror, 52. 

 Inhab. Bermuda, March to end of May, then leave. 



I have a tracing of the Bermuda Whale, but do not know from 

 whence it was derived : it is said to be common in that island. 

 It is very like the figure of Megaptera longimana, but the dorsal 

 fin is represented as lower, and the tail wider. This is doubtless 

 the Whale described in Phil. Trans, i. 11 and 132, where an ac- 

 count is given of the method of taking it. It is described 

 thus : " Length of adult 88 feet ; the pectoral 26 feet (rather 

 less than ^ the entire length), and the tail 23 feet broad. There 

 are great bends (plaits) underneath from nose to the navel ; a fin 

 on the back paved with fat like the caul of a hog ; sharp, like the 

 ridge of a house behind ; head pretty bluff, full of bumps on both 

 sides ; back black, belly white, and dorsal fin behind." 



" Upon their fins and tail they have a store of clams or bar- 

 nacles, upon which he said rock-weeds and sea-tangle did grow a 

 hand long. 



" They fed much upon grass growing at the bottom of the 

 sea : in their great bag of maw he found 2 or 3 hogshead of a 

 greenish grassy matter." Phil. Trans, i. 13. 



Baleen from Bermuda, called Bermuda finner, is extensively 

 imported ; it is similar to the baleen of the Grey Finner. 



3. MEGAPTERA POESKOP. POESKOP, or CAPE HUMP-BACK. 



Dorsal nearly over the end of the pectoral. 

 Intermaxillary narrowed and contracted in front. 

 Temporal bone broad, triangular. 



" Second and third cervical vertebrae united by the upper part 

 of their body." Cuvier. 



Rorqual du Cap, Cuv. Oss. Foss. v. 370. t. 26. f. 1-4. Skull, t. 

 26. f. 19 to 21. Verteb. f . 9 & 22. Fins, f. 24. Pelvis, t. 25. 

 f. 15, tongue bone, all from Lalande's specimen. 



B. Balaenoptera Poeskop, Desmoulin, Diet. Class. H. N.ii. 164, 

 from Lalande's MSS. 



B. Lalandii, Fischer, Syn. 525, from Cuvier. 



B. Capensis, A. Smith, from Cuvier. 



Megaptera Poeskop, Gray, Zool. E. 8f T. 17- 



Rorqual noueux, Voy. Pol Sud, t. 24, fern, not described. 



Balsenoptera leucopteron, Lesson, N. Tab. Reg. Anim. 202. 



Hump-backed Whales, Ross, Antarctic Voy. i. 161,191 ; Mitchell, 

 Trav. Austr. ii. 241 ; Beale, H. Sperm. W. 12, 30. 



Inhab. Cape of Good Hope, Lalande ; called Poeskop. Skele- 

 ton, Mus. Paris. 



Lalande's account was published by Desmoulin, who merely 



