Natural History of East FinmarJc. 349 



Rangifer tarandus, Desm, All the Reindeer in East Finmark are 



now tarae. They are still wild iu the Hardauger district and 



in the central range of mountains. 

 Megaptera hoops, Linn, Not so common as the two following. 

 Balcvnoptera muscidus, Linn. This and the next are the two great 



whales, measuring when adult 70-80 feet iu length, which 



chiefly occur at Vadso. 



Sibhaldii, Gray. 



borecdis, Lesson. Sporadic at Vadsii, more common in West 



Finmark. 

 rostrata, Fabr. Smaller species ; not hunted, caught in nets 



and often shot. Chiefly found in Bergen district, occasionally 



in East Finmark. 

 Balania hiscayensis. Gray. Extinct in East Finmark for some 



200 years (?) ; bones found at Vadso and Soro. 

 Hyperoodon rostratus, 0. F, Miill. (Bottle-nosed Whale.) Chiefly 



killed in Arctic seas, but occurring in ice-floes to the north of 



East Finmark. 

 Monodon monoceros, Linn. (Narwhal.) Killed once in Varanger 



Fiord about eighty years ago. 

 Delpliinapterus lencas, Pallas. (White Whale.) This species, the 



inhabitant of the seas of Nova Zemblia, Spitsbergen, Greenland, 



and N.E. America, has occurred off the East Finmark coast. 

 Orca gladiator, Laplace. (Grampus.) Earely killed. It swims 



iu herds and attacks the great whales. 

 Glohocephalus melas, Traill. Occasional ; chiefly enclosed by nets 



in narrow fjords and then shot. As many as 2500 have been 



killed at Lofoten at one time. 

 LagenorhyncJms albirosfris, Gray. Occurs throughout the whole 



of Norway. 



The whales which are chiefly killed for oil are Megaptera 

 hoojys, 3alcenoptera iSihhaldii^ muscuUis,horealiSj?ii\\<\ rostrata. 

 Some years ago Vadso was the great centre of Norwegian 

 whalc-Hshery ; I liave a note (but do not remember whence 

 it was taken, and therefore, though I believe it to be correct, 

 I cannot vouch for its accuracy) tiiat in 1884 450 whales were 

 killed, in 1885 lb 98, and in 1886 954. When the fishery 

 was at its height the harbour of Vadso was covered with 

 floating oil, and the stench from the dead whales must have 

 been something frightful. The fisiiery at Vadso was at the 

 time of my visit closed ; but the fishery was still continued 

 at Mehavn, Soro, and Jan Fjord. But the whales are now 

 scarce. I only saw one which had been killed and perhaps 

 half a dozen alive spouting. Their great destruction has been 

 due to the mode of slaughter invented by the well-known 



