206 The Zoologist— May, 1866. 



first was a large black fin-backed whale, noticed three or four times ; 

 the second a smaller animal, perhaps about thirty or forty feet long, of 

 which some half a dozen came and played round the yacht on the 12lh 

 of August. In general form, especially in the esocine shape of the 

 head, these corresponded very closely with the engraving given by Dr. 

 Scoresby (Arctic Regions, vol. ii. pi. 13, f. 2) as that of Baiiena 

 rostrata (= Baiaenoptera rostrata, J. E. Gray) ; but 1 rather hesitate to 

 refer them positively to that species, on account of their colour, which 

 was apparently of a uniform light reddish brown. I had an excellent 

 opportunity of observing these whales, for they kept with us about a 

 quarter of an hour, sometimes passing under the ship, and often coming 

 up close alongside, within perhaps thirty yards. On the following day 

 1 saw a school of grampuses, with extremely long and high dorsal fins; 

 but this was the only occasion on which the species was noticed. 

 Some kind of porpoise, on the contrary, was seen more than once.* 

 In addition to these Cetaceans, the right whale {Balcena vvjsticelus) 

 and the narwhal {Monudon monoceras) are well known to inhabit the 

 Spitsbergen seas. Mr. Malmgren, in his careful paper before alluded 

 to, enumerates six or perhaps seven species of whales, not reckoning 

 a porpoise. We therefore have seven or eight Cetaceans, seven Carni- 

 vores (including Ursus maritimus, on which I have no remark to 

 make) and one Ruminant as the sum total of the Mammalian Fauna of 



• 



Spitsbergen. Without extending these notes by going into details, I 

 may here state that 1 think the bird-fauna cannot be reckoned at more 

 than twenty-seven species. We therefore have the singular result of 

 a country, say as large as Ireland, where the number of Mammalian 

 bears to the number of Ornithic species the ratio of 15 or 16 to 27. 



Alfred Newton. 



The Meadow or Bank Vole (Arvicola riparia, Yarrell) at Lylham. — On the 3rd of 

 April, while removing some potatoes from a pit, I found an inilividual of the abore 

 species lying in a kind of nest, which apparently had formed its hyberuacnlura duriofj 

 ihe winter; it was dead and partially decayed. The nesl was made ainon;; the 



* I feel very confident of the truth of this statement; but I find no mention made 

 of any porpoise in the Spitsbergen seas by either Scoresby or Malmgren. Tliis faci I 

 nnfiirtunaiely had not noticed until my return home; so that (porpoises being in 

 general of so common occurrence on a sea voyage) I neglected to record, as I otherwise 

 should certainly have done, the dates and localities of their appearance. It is of course 

 possil)le that what I took to be porpoises were only the young of some larger Cetacean ; 

 but I do not think this was the case. 



