144 WILD BEASTS OF THE WORLD 



The commonest, with us at any rate, is the Common Rorqual (B. 

 muscu/us), which measures about twenty yards, and is slate above and 

 white below, with black whalebone. Then there are the Blue Whale (B. 

 sibbaldit), the hugest animal in existence, which grows to thirty yards, and 

 is blue-slate all over, also with black whalebone, and Rudolphi's Rorqual 

 (B. borealis], which is slaty-black spotted with white above, and white 

 below, with white tips to the black whalebone. This is about fifteen 

 yards long, but is not so small as the fourth species, the Pike-Whale 

 (B. rostratd), black above and white below, with a white band across 

 the flipper, and pale-coloured whalebone. This is only about ten yards 

 long, but is a great fish-eater, like the Common Rorqual, the idea that 

 all Whalebone Whales feed on minute creatures not being quite correct. 



THE HUMPBACK 



(Megaptera longimana] 



THE Humpback, which is found in all seas, is a clumsy-looking 

 Whale, with a pleated throat and short hump-like back-fin. It is 

 variably marked with black, white, and grey, but its great charac- 

 teristic is the length of the flippers, which are also white in colour. 

 They measure about four yards, the whole length of the beast being 

 about fifteen. The whalebone is short and black. This is a rather 

 tame and playful Whale, being particularly given to smacking its 

 friends with its flippers, producing a noise which may be heard miles 

 off in calm weather. 



THE CALIFORNIAN GREY WHALE 



(Rkachianectes glaucus) 



THIS Whale, which is confined to the Pacific coast of North America, 

 up and down which it ranges according to season, is of a mottled 

 grey colour, with light-coloured whalebone. It has no back-fin, and 

 only two pleats on the throat. It measures about fourteen yards 

 only, but is considered one of the most dangerous of all Whales, 

 owing to its fierce temper and its habit of frequenting very shallow 

 water, where it is difficult to see what it is doing owing to the 

 stirred-up sand ; hence it is often called " Devil-fish." 



