244 CETACEA 



swarms in the fjords. Several specimens have been taken on the 

 British coasts, two fine skeletons from the Firth of Forth being pre- 

 served in the Edinburgh museums. (2) Balanoptera musculus, the 

 Common Rorqual, has a length of 65 to 70 feet, is of a grayish slate 

 colour above and white underneath, and the baleen is slate colour 

 variegated with yellow or brown. It has usually 62 vertebras, 

 of which 15 bear ribs. This is the commonest of all the large 

 Whales on the British coasts, scarcely a winter passing with- 

 out the body of one being somewhere washed ashore, usually 

 after stormy weather, and more frequently on the south coast, 

 as this species has a more southern range than the last, and 

 frequently enters the Mediterranean. It feeds largely on fish, 

 and is frequently seen feasting among shoals of herring. (3) 

 Balcenoptera borealis, often called Rudolphi's Whale from its first 

 describer, is a smaller species, scarcely attaining a length of 50 feet. 

 It is bluish -black above, with oblong, light-coloured spots, whilst 

 the under parts are more or less white ; the whole of the tail and 

 both sides of the flippers are black ; the baleen is black, and the 

 bristly ends fine, curling, and white ; the flippers are very small, 

 measuring one-eleventh of the total length of the body. There are 

 56 vertebras, with 14 pairs of ribs. This species, according to 

 Collett, feeds chiefly on minute crustaceans, mainly Calanus finmar- 

 chicus and Euphausia inermis, and not on fish. Until lately it was 

 considered the rarest of the Whales of European seas, and was only 

 known to science from a few individuals stranded on the coasts of 

 northern Europe at long intervals, the skeletons of which have been 

 preserved in museums. The most southern point at which it has 

 been met with hitherto is Biarritz in France. Since the establish- 

 ment of the whaling station near the North Cape it has been shown 

 to be a regular summer visitor, and in 1885, 771 individuals were 

 captured on the coast of Finmark. (4) Balcenoptera rostrata, the 

 lesser Fin- Whale or Rorqual, is the smallest species found in the 

 northern seas, rarely exceeding 30 feet in length. Its colour is 

 grayish-black above, whilst the under side is white, including the 

 whole of the lower side of the tail ; the inner side of the flippers 

 is white ; and there is a broad white band across the outer side, 

 which is a very characteristic mark of the species ; the baleen is 

 yellowish-white. The dorsal fin in this and the last species is 

 comparatively high, and placed far forwards on the body. This 

 Whale has usually 48 vertebrae, 1 1 of which bear ribs. It is common 

 in summer in the fjords of Norway, and is often seen around the 

 British Isles. It has been taken, though rarely, in the Mediterranean ; 

 and ranges as far north as Davis's Straits. 



Rorquals are met with in almost all seas throughout the world, 

 but further and more accurate observations are required before 

 their specific characters and geographical distribution can be made 



