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NOTES AND QUERIES. 



MAMMALIA. 



Greater Horse-shoe Bat at Oxford. — A friend of mine one evening in 

 October, about ten years ago, — he thinks in 1875, — shot a specimen of this 

 bat as it was flying over the reservoir here, and kept it some days in his 

 house, but did not have it preserved. He was able to compare it, however, 

 with a figure of the species, and he says it was very large, so that I have 

 no doubt as to its identity. Like the specimen of Bechstein's Bat obtained 

 at Godstow, as recorded in the ' Midland Naturalist,' it may, I suppose, be 

 considered a native of Berkshire, the reservoir being on the south side of 

 the river. Is not this the most northern English (perhaps European ?) 

 locality known for the species ? For, e.xcepting the counties of the south 

 coast, it seems only to have been reported from Swansea, Bristol, Clifton, and 

 Weston-super-Mare (from which place there is a specimen in the Oxford 

 Museum), the Colchester record being considered a mistake. — J.E.Kelsall 

 (Balliol College, Oxford). 



[We have a note of one taken at Carperley, Wensleydale, by Mr. Carter, 

 of Burton House, Bedale, wliich would place the range of this species in 

 England considerably to the north of Oxford. — Ed.] 



Rudolphi's Rorqual at Goole. — The article on the Finwhale Fishery 

 by Mr. Cocks, in your last number, proved very interesting to me, inasmuch 

 as we had shortly before captured a young male Rorqual, and I will, with 

 your permission, give a short description of it. It was seen in the Humber 

 and Ouse on September 5th, and shortly after high water that evening was 

 observed by some boys trying to get into the Barge Lock, attracted, in all 

 probability, by the clear water escaping from the docks. The boys, with 

 assistance, opened the lock-gates, and the animal at once entered ; the gates 

 were closed, and the capture was complete. After a very severe struggle it 

 was killed, lashed to a vessel, and in the morning lifted out of the water by 

 a large crane. It was carefully weighed and measured, with the intention 

 of getting it properly identified. The length was 32 ft. 6 in. ; greatest 

 girth, 15 ft. 6 in., least (near the tail), 4 ft. ; height at the flippers, 4 ft. 8 in. ; 

 length of flipper, 4 ft. 1 in. ; length of dorsal fin, 2 ft. 4 in. ; length from 

 that fin to the tail, 9 ft. 3 in. ; flukes of tail, 7 ft. 2 in. ; across, breadth of 

 fluke, 2 ft. 8 in. ; from tip of jaw to blowholes, 4 ft. 5 in. ; from end of jaw 

 to eye (situated near the angle of the mouth), 5 ft. 6 in. ; exposed portion of 

 e3-eball, 3 in. Weight nearly 9^ tons. The colour was black and smooth 

 above, white on the under parts; the curious plaits or folds extended 

 longitudinally from the under jaw to the middle of the body. The flippers 

 were black on both sides. The baleen tapered in length from fifteen to 



