WHALES. 51 



its normal position, and his huge gullet gaping like some submarine 

 cavern, the fish unwittingly glide down it, to find egress impossible. 

 This may or may not be the case; but I, at any rate, can find no 

 more reasonable theory, for it is manifestly absurd to suppose the 

 whale capable of catching fish in the ordinary sense, indicating 

 pursuit." 



Whaling was a most profitable industry in these Islands a 

 century ago. Waikouaiti was a well-known whaling-station when 

 John Jones started his settlement there over seventy years ago. 

 Otakou (or Otago) was another; and it is not so long ago that 

 the old trying-down plant was still lying about Harrington Point. 

 Stewart Island and Foveaux Strait, Tautuku Bay, and other 

 sheltered spots on the coast were all originally settled by whalers. 

 But these days are gone, and the whales themselves are compara- 

 tively rare. Whaling, however, is still carried on by motor-launch 

 from Tory Channel and other places. 



Besides the species I have mentioned, another, allied to the 

 Sperm Whale, is occasionally met with. This is the Pigmy Whale 

 (Kogia breviceps), which differs in various anatomical respects from 

 its larger relative, but most markedly in its size, for it seldom 

 exceeds 15 ft. in length. 



Several species belonging to the family of beaked whales have 

 been described from New Zealand waters by the late Sir James 

 Hector and other naturalists. They are by no means common 

 animals, but one reason of their rarity may be the fact of their 

 being chiefly found right down in the Antarctic Ocean, where they 

 are scarcely disturbed, as they have little commercial value. 



Of the Porpoise Whale (Berardius arnouxi) only four or five 

 specimens have been met with, yet it is the only well-known species 

 of the genus. "It is 30 ft. to 32 ft. in length, and is of a velvety 

 black colour, with a greyish belly. Instead of lowing like a cow, 

 this whale has been described as 'bellowing like a bull ' ! " 



Of the genus Mesoplodon, which are known as Scamperdown 

 Whales, some five species are said to occur in New Zealand. They 

 are moderate-sized whales, 15 ft. to 17 ft. in length, which have a 

 world-wide distribution. 



Another whale, known as the Goose-beak Whale (Ziphius 

 cavirostris) is probably the only species of the genus, and its dis- 

 tribution is also world-wide. Beddard says of it, " Our knowledge 



