324 ON THE CETACEA OF THE NOKFOLK " FOEEST-BED." 



Cetacea, despite the large "number of specimens recently added to 

 our collections, there was still a want in this country of sufficient 

 materials for comparison. Balcena biscayensis had almost died out 

 without specimens being procured, but fortunately it seemed to have 

 lately increased in numbers. Whales varied much individually, and 

 one skeleton of each species was insufficient for comparison. 



With the general conclusions of the Author the speaker agreed. 

 He saw no reason for distinguishing the tooth on the table from 

 that of the Common Sperm-Whale. He doubted whether Balcena 

 biscayensis differed from B. australis ; but perhaps it was safer to 

 refer the specimen described to the first-named species. Mr. 

 Newton's collection gave a fair epitome of the Cetaceans inhabiting 

 British seas, as it contained examples of all the leading types. 



Dr. WooDWAED inquired whether the remains might not be 

 rather later in time than the true Porest-bed age, especially if the 

 latter was a land period, and referable to the time when the Forest- 

 bed was being again submerged. 



Mr. Clement Eeid thought the bones came from the Porest-bed, 

 as they agreed with specimens from that deposit in the state of 

 mineralization. He obtained the Sperm-Whale tooth himself from a 

 fisherman who had just found it, and he described the circumstances. 

 It was noteworthy that the large land-mammals of the Forest-bed 

 were extinct, whilst the Cetaceans appeared to be of recent species. 



The Author thanked Prof. Flower for his remarks, and acknow- 

 ledged his indebtedness to Prof. Flower's writings in the working 

 out of these fossils. 



