( 417 ) 



THE FINWHALE B^ISHERY ON THE COAST OF FINMARK. 



By Alfred Hknkagk Cocks, M.A., F.Z.S. 



(Continued from p. 370.) 



Very little, ornithologically speaking, was observed during 

 the cruise; but about this time a duck — I tbink a female Long- 

 tail — flew past us; and about an hour later a Mealy Kedpoll 

 came on board, and settled on tbe steam-winch, close to where 

 the mate and I were standing ; on my trying to catch it, it flew 

 forwards, and remained some minutes trying to eat the frayings 

 of the whale-line coiled in front of the gun on the iron tray or 

 sheet previously described ; it finally flew away in the direction 

 of the land. Eather later I saw distinctly, and watched for 

 some little time as it swam, a Eazorbill, a bird which, so far as 

 my experience goes, is decidedly rare on the Norwegian coast. 

 I afterwards saw a Skua, which may probably have been Lestris 

 pomatorhinus. Kittiwakes, once or twice in large flocks, probably 

 feeding on Coal-fish, complete my list of birds. 



The harpooner told me that Common Eorquals, when sound- 

 ing, never throw their tails out of the water, like the HumiDbacks, 

 but the Blue Whales do so sometimes. He descended from the 

 crow's nest and joined us at dinner about 12.20, and reported 

 four steamers after about as many whales. Ten minutes later 

 we also started after a Humpback, and very soon found that 

 there was a pair in company, the larger having a wound on the 

 right side, forward of the fin, and hence reasonably supposed 

 to be the individual we had shot at yesterday. The chase was 

 very interesting, and at times intensely exciting. Once I saw 

 one of the whales, on its side, put its long flipper straight up out 

 of the water. They generally dived and came up again nearly 

 at the same time ; once they both sounded at the same instant, 

 and once we got between the two ; two or three times spray came 

 over us from their flukes. After some time one whale left, and 

 we continued after the one with the mark on its side ; it had 

 evidently learned wisdom by experience, and kept well on the 

 look-out. The range of the harpoon-gun, from the weight it has 

 to propel, and more especially from the great weight of the line 

 stopping its momentum, is very short : I cannot give the range 

 accurately in yards, but it is only about, or very little more than, 



