1914] TownseTid: The Porpoise in Captivity. 297 



attempting to dive under it. The former can be prevented to 

 some extent by sending a boat to the outer curve of the net, 

 which serves to keep the animals from charging against it„ 

 Some of those that attempt to dive underneath become enmeshed 

 and, being air breathers, are soon drowned. Thirty-three por- 

 poises were beached in the haul of the seine which provided our 

 specimens. 



Although porpoises have been taken at Hatteras for two 

 hundred years, the fishery has been conducted in a somewhat 

 desultory manner, and with but little capital invested. The 

 greatest number taken in a single year appears to have been 

 fifteen hundred. Porpoises are valuable for their jaw oil, 

 hides and body blubber, the value of each being in the order 

 given. The oil derived from the jaws represents the greater 

 part of the value, being worth ordinarily twenty dollars a gal- 

 lon, refined. It is extracted from the broad posterior branches 

 of the lower jaw, and is universally used for the lubrication 

 of watches, clocks and similarly delicate mechanisms. An attempt 

 was made at the Hatteras fishery to utilize the carcasses of these 

 animals for fertilizer, but, as the location is isolated, the question 

 of fuel for the furnace proved too serious and the project was 

 abandoned. 



The bottle-nosed porpoise (Tursiops truncatiis) is the only 

 species of porpoise that has ever been taken at the Hatteras 

 fishery. Our eight-foot specimens represent the average size. 

 A number of animals were measured in November, however, 

 which exceeded nine feet in length. The greatest length for this 

 species at Hatteras is twelve feet, but this is altogether unusual. 

 Measurements and weights taken in November show that a por- 

 poise five and a half feet long weighs 100 pounds; six feet, 160 

 pounds ; seven feet, 200 pounds ; and eight feet, 300 pounds. 



The movement of porpoises along the great beach which 

 extends in a general southwesterly direction from Cape Hatter- 

 as is usually close to the surf. The bands appear to move in 

 both directions. Residents of Hatteras are of the opinion that 

 the majority of those in the vicinity of Hatteras Inlet move to 

 the eastward, turning south from the Cape, whence they grad- 

 ually swing back to the mainland. They have not, however. 



