98 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



bably feeding) along the margin of a voe or bay, the black 

 specks at a distance resembling a swarm of ducks. The penis 

 is large in most Cetaceans, and especially in the Porpoise, in 

 which the tip is slender, almost probe-pointed, with the apertm'e 

 of the m'ethra just within the extremity. The size of the testes, 

 which greatly exceed in proportion those of the polygamous ram, 

 would point to similar habits in the case of the Porpoise, yet 

 there is no clear evidence on this head. 



Further, at St. Andrews, in July, single Porpoises have 

 often been noticed swimming quietly in a circle near the com- 

 mencement of the Bast Eocks, and they have been found to be 

 adult females accompanied by their young, which may be ob- 

 served, as the mother rolls on its side, snapping at the mammse. 

 Moreover, it has happened that the suckling has been captured 

 in a salmon stake-net, or stranded on the beach, whilst on one 

 occasion an adult female was caught in a neighbouring stake- 

 net with the milk flowing from the teats* on slight pressure, as 

 when laid on a slab. Like certain other forms, the Porpoise 

 therefore seeks the shore for reproduction. Such may also 

 have been the reason why a Ca'ing Whale of 12-14 ft. sought 

 the beach at the laboratory in October some years ago, and was 

 almost stranded, until, by a desperate effort, it reached deeper 

 water, and in its fright headed for the open sea with all speed. 



Like the Whalebone Whales, the toothed forms are for the 

 most part captured by the harpoon, the harpoon-gun of modern 

 times being so efficient a weapon as sometimes to kill the 

 smaller forms by a single discharge. The modern harpoon is 

 fired from a gun fixed to the bow of the whaling-boat, and has a 

 screwed point containing an explosive, which is fired by a 

 seconds fuse. While dealing destruction, for instance, in the 

 thorax behind the flipper it does not disengage the flukes of the 

 harpoon from the tissues, so that the "line" (rope) from the 

 boat still holds. Whether the Toothed Whales can be profitably 

 caught by the Japanese method of throwing a large rope-net 

 over them and towing them to shore alive remains to be seen. 

 The large Whalebone Whales are thus captured. The most 



* Vide " Chemical Composition of the Milk of the Porpoise," by Prof. 

 Purdie, F.R.S., ' Ann. Nat. Hist.' December, 1885, and ' Chemical News,' 

 October 2nd, 1885. 



