KUNGL. SV. VET. AKADEMIENS HANDLINGAR. BAND 40. N:0 5. ä3 



Satarday at noon, Sörling relätes, when I had gone along with the whaling steamer, 

 we shot a Finner. The harpoon got a good hold, the engine was stopped, and the 

 whale tugged away with the whole steamer with a speed of 3—4 knöts an hour, and 

 it continued to do so the whole Saturday afternoon and the whole night. On Sun- 

 day morning order was given to work the steam engine backward, but the Finner 

 tugged away northward as before with hardly diminished speed. Finally steam was 

 put on the winch too, for the purpose of shortening the line if possible, and dimin- 

 isbing the distance to the whale, so that a new shot might be tried. But all these 

 efforts were in vain. Finally, towards Sunday noon, in consequence of the double 

 strain on the harpoon, it loosened its grip and the whale got free and disappeared. 

 At another opportunity the whaling steamer was tugged for three whole days by 

 a Finback with similar result. With such experience it is no wonder that the 

 whalers are not very eager to attack the Finbacks as long as they have other whales 

 to bunt. This is the more reasonable as the Finback in spite of its size yields com- 

 paratively little oil. Usually it only amonnts to 20 — 25 barrels. During the winter, 

 Sörling found that the blubber coat on the flanks of a Finback was not thicker 

 than about 3 — 4 inches, and that is not much for a whale. 



Megaptera lalandii (Fischer). 



Syn: Balcena Lalandii Fischer 1 1829. 



Balcejioptera capensis A. Smith 1834. 

 Poescopia Lalandii Gray 1866. 

 Megaptera ef. longimana Racovitza 1903. 



A skeleton of a halfgrown niale shot off Cumberland Bay, South Georgia the 2<1 of Febr. 1905. 

 A male foetus, the motlier of which was shot 8 — 9 railes off Cumberland Bay, South Georgia the 

 28th of Febr. 1905. 



Some pieces of baleen of adult Humpback. 



Tb names of this list have all of them (except Racovitza's) been given to 

 the Hu apback of the seas of Cape of Good Hope, but this is no doubt identical 

 with the one found at South Georgia, as will be further discussed below. 



Humpbacks have been more often observed in southern waters and by the differ- 

 ent antaretie expeditions than any other species of whalebone-whales. Racovitza 

 (18) has given an admirable account of this to which may be referred. Although 

 the »Belgica» Expedition did not catch any whales, the author quoted had the op- 

 portunity of repeatedly observing Humpbacks in a living state and on rather close 

 quarters. Racovitza has therefore been able to record (18) approximative measure- 



1 Fischer's diagnose is worded in the following way: »J3. Lalandii; occipite gibbere instrueto; pinna 

 dorsali longissimå fere super pectoralibns locatå; vertebris quinquaginta tribus: cervicalibus (präster epistro- 

 pheum enm tertia coalitum) liberis; costis (utriuque quatuordecim (tredecirn Desmoul.); raaniculi indice biarti- 

 culato.» This is of course iucomplete and to some extent fanlty, e. g. the description of the dorsal fin, but 

 as Fischer qnotes in the first rank Ccvier's »Rorqnal du Cap» (Oss. Foss.) as type and this is a Megaptera 

 his name may be retained, becanse there is no doubt as to wbicli animal it is to be refeiTed. 



K. Sv. Vet. Akad. HanJl. Band 40. X:o 5. 5 



