BLAINVILLE'S BEAKED WHALE 



tusks were used, probably, as an aid in tearing 

 aside the seaweed when in search of prey, and in 

 breaking up the substance of soft-bodied animals 

 such as jelly-fish, cuttles, etc., preparatory to feed- 

 ing on them. Why Nature should evolve such 

 teeth is a mystery, unless they are curved over 

 the upper mandible for the purpose of preventing 

 the possessor of them from taking too big a morsel 

 into its mouth and choking itself. 



BLAINVILLE'S BEAKED WHALE 



(Mesoplodon densirostris) 



THIS Whale is also known as the Seychelle Zephius 

 (Dioplodon secbellensis). It has been recorded from 

 Seychelles and the South African seas. The species 

 is apparently exceedingly rare. It differs from other 

 Beaked Whales in the size and length of its teeth. 

 There is a single pair set in the lower jaw, 6 inches in 

 length, 3f inches in width, and if inches in thickness. 

 Extinct species of Beaked Whales have been found 

 in the Miocene Teritary deposits of North America 

 and Europe. 



SOWERBY'S BEAKED WHALE 



(Mesoplodon bidens) 



SOWERBY'S Beaked Whale has been recorded from 



the north Atlantic and off the coasts of Europe, 



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