Natural History of East Finmarh. 349 



Rangifer tarandus, Desm. All the Reindeer in East Finmark are 



now tame. They are still wild in the Hardauger district and 



in the central range of mountains. 

 Megaptera hoops, Linn. Not so common as the two following. 

 Balcenoptera miisculus, Linn. This and the next arc the two great 



whales, measuring when adult 70-80 feet in length, which 



chiefly occur at Vadso. 



Sibbaldii, Gray. 



borealis, Lesson. Sporadic at Vadso, more common iii West 



Finmai'k. 

 rostmta, Fabr. Smaller species ; not hunted, caught in nets 



and often shot. Chiefly found in Bergen district, occasionally 



in East Finmark. 

 Balana hiscayensis. Gray. Extinct in East Finmark for some 



200 years (?) ; bones found at Vadso and Sorci. 

 Eijperoodon rostratus, 0. F. Miill. (Bottle-nosed Whale.) Chiefly 



killed in Arctic seas, but occurring in ice-floes to the north of 



East Finmark. 

 Monodon monoceros, Linn. (Narwhal.) Killed once in Varanger 



Fiord about eighty years ago. 

 Delpliinapterus Jeucas, Pallas. (White Whale.) This species, the 



inhabitant of the seas of Nova Zemblia, Spitsbergen, Greenland, 



and N.E. America, has occurred off the East Finmark coast, 

 Orca gladiator, Laplace. (Grampus.) Barely killed. It swims 



in herds and attacks the great whales. 

 Glohocepjhalus melas, Traill. Occasional ; chiefly enclosed by nets 



in narrow fjords and then shot. As many as 2500 have been 



killed at Lofoten at one time. 

 Lagenorhynch'us alhirostris, Gray. Occurs throughout the whole 



of Norway. 



The whales which are cliiefly killed for oil are Megaptera 

 hoops^ Balcenoptera Sibbaldii, muscuhts, borealis, and rostrata. 

 Some years ago Vadso was the great centre of Norwegian 

 whale-iishery ; I have a note (but do not remember whence 

 it was taken, and therefore, though I believe it to be correct, 

 I cannot vouch for its accuracy) tliat in 1884 450 whales were 

 killed, in 1885 13 98, and in 1886 954. When the fishery 

 was at its height the harbour of Vadso was covered with 

 floating oil, and the stench from the dead whales must have 

 been something frightful. The fishery at Vadso was at the 

 time of my visit closed ; but the fishery was still continued 

 at Mehavn, Soro, and Jan Fjord. But the whales are now 

 scarce. I only saw one which had been killed and perhaps 

 half a dozen alive spouting. Their great destruction has been 

 due to the mode of slaugliter invented by the well-kuown 



