40 FLOWER. — ARCTIC CETACEA. 



out, assigned to it, the vague designations of seamen, such as 

 " whales," " bottlenoses," " porpoises," &c., being avoided. If in 

 " schools," the number of individuals, as nearly as they can be 

 estimated, the direction in which they are swimming, the cha- 

 racter of the " blowing," the average duration of the intervals 

 between each expiration, &c., will also be subjects for observation. 



If any animal is actually captured, or found dead, abundant 

 opportunity for observation will be afforded, as our knowledge of 

 most of the species is derived chiefly from skeletons, badly pre- 

 served portions of the soft parts, and imperfect descriptions of 

 their external form. Good drawings, made to scale and accurately 

 coloured, of the external appearance of nearly all the species are 

 still desiderata. Careful measurements, devoid of the (often un- 

 conscious) exaggeration which vitiates so many of those already 

 given by voyagers, are also required, especially of the larger 

 species. The extreme length should always be given, if possible, 

 in a straight line from the tip of the nose to the notch between 

 the flukes of the tail, as measurements following the curves of the 

 body give a very erroneous idea of the actual size. Any parasites 

 which may be found attached to the external surface or contained 

 within the animal should be carefully described, and, if practicable, 

 preserved.* The contents of the stomach should always be noted, 

 with a view to ascertain the natural food of the animal. 



Collecting will probably be limited to smaller or rarer specimens, 

 as it will not be possible to occupy valuable space by such bulky 

 objects as are the skeletons of most of the Northern Cetaceans. 

 If, however, whole skeletons cannot be preserved, certain portions 

 of them might be removed and brought home without difficulty, 

 especially the pelvic bones and rudiments of the hinder extremity, 

 which are nearly always wanting in the skeletons in museums ; 

 next to these, the skull, the cervical vertebrae, the hyoid bones, 

 the sternum, and the fore limb or paddles are the most charac- 

 teristic parts. Brains of any of the larger species are much 

 wanted, if they can be obtained in a tolerably fresh condition and 

 carefully preserved in spirit. If any foetuses are met with in 

 dissecting, they should, if possible, be jDreserved entire, with the 

 uterus and membranes, in spirit or strong brine. 



List of Cetacea of the North Atlantic, 



I. — Whalebone Whales. {Mystacoceti.) — Easily recognised 

 by the baleen or " whalebone " with which the palate is fur- 

 nished, and by the double openings of the blow-holes on the top 

 of the head. 



Genus Balcena. The one species inhabiting the Arctic regions 

 is B. mysticetuSy Linn., the Greenland Right-Whale, distin- 

 guished from the other Whalebone Whales of the same seas by 

 the very large size of the head (one-third, or even more, of the 

 entire length), by the great length of the baleen, the absence of 

 longitudinal furrows in the skin of the throat, and the absence of 



* On this subject see Van Benedeu, '' Les Cetaces, leur Commensaux et 

 leur Parasites," Bull, de I'Acad. royale de Belgique, 2"'^ serie, tome XXIX., 

 No. 4, p. 347, 1870. 



