A STRANGE GIANT OF THE OCEAN 



tance ; the low, bushy, vapor column is directed diago- 

 nally forward and upward, and the animal blows much 

 oftener and more regularly than other large cetaceans. 

 A sperm may spout thirty or forty times when not 



An anterior view of a young male sperm whale. The head occu- 

 pies one-third the entire length of the animal and the lower 

 jaw is much shorter than the upper. 



disturbed, generally lying still but occasionally swim- 

 ming slowly during the entire breathing period. 



When a bull is wallowing at the surface, the "hump" 

 (corresponding to the dorsal fin of the fin whales) is 

 first seen, and at regular intervals, as the spout is 

 ejected, the nose appears some forty feet ahead. The 

 length of time he stays at the surface, the number of 



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