Sj)ecimen of Soirerb)/\i Whale. 283 



and ])octoral fius appear to 1)0 too large. The mouth is widely 

 open, but no groove running backwards from its angle is shown. 

 The length is stated to have been IJ metres 45 centim. ( = H feet 

 4 inches), and the animal was kept alive out of the water for 

 two days ; it made a noise like a cow. The colour was 

 " brunatre plombee," except the ventral surface, which was 

 •' blanchatre et ccndre." Plate ii. shows skeleton, plate iii. 

 hyoid and other details. 



The first known example of this species was met with in 

 the year 1800; after twenty-five years two others were ])ro- 

 cured in France; an interval of ten years elapsed (1835) 

 before the next specimen was obtained on the Belgian coast 

 at Ostend ; nothing more was heard of the species till 1864, 

 in which year, also in each of the years 18(36, 1867, 1869, 

 1870, and 1872, a single individual was procured ; the next 

 example was obtained in 1880; 1881 produced two, 1885 

 three, 1888 one, 1889 one, and 1892 one — nineteen examples 

 in all. Of seventeen instances in which the sex was known 

 or believed to be known eleven were males and six females ; 

 we mention this preponderance of males as being the reverse 

 of what occurs with regard to the nearly allied Ilyperoodon^ 

 the adult male of which has never been met with on our coast, 

 although large numbers of both sexes congregate in summer 

 in the seas between Iceland and Jan Mayen and the females are 

 regular spring and autumn visitors in the Noitli Sea on their 

 way to and from their summer habitat ; but the line of migra- 

 tion of the males appears to be different to that followed by 

 the females. 



Again, with regard to the seasons at which it has been met 

 with, Sowerby's Whale displays none of the regularity which 

 marks the movements of the llyperoodon ; an analysis of the 

 dates shows that it has been met with in February once, ]\Iarch 

 twice, April once, ^lay twice, June once, '' summer " once, 

 August twice, September twice, October twice, and December 

 once, the bulk having been stranded on the shores of the 

 North Sea and of the English Channel, and on the south- 

 west coast of Ireland ; i. e. from the Shetland Isles to the 

 north of France. It may be that the February and De- 

 cember examples were belated wanderers which had lost 

 their way ; but the occurrence of so many examples between 

 the months of March and October would seem to indicate that 

 the waters of the North Sea represent the extreme northern 

 boundary of the wanderings of this species ; their southern 

 habitat is quite unknown, except that two have been met with 

 on the western side of the North Atlantic, at Nantucket Island 



