KUNGL. SV. VET. AKADEMIENS HANDLINGAR. BAND 40. NIO 5. 43 



the southern Black whale, in all stages, is provided witb a comparatively longer baleen 

 than its northern relative. 



Sörling has taken some few other measurements of two adult souihern Black 

 whales and a foettis of the same species. These are communicated in the follow- 

 ing table: 



& ad. shot off o* ad. shot off 9 foctus, the 



Posseseion South Georgia motlier shot 



Bay, Smith 14 /i> 1905. off Cumher- 



Geovgia, ~ja land Bay, 



1905. Sou tli Georgia 



12 /s 1905. 



Distance From tip of snout to hind-margin of caudal fin in a straiglit line 14, i o ra. 15,2i ra. 4,io ni. 



Distance from anal opening to hind-margin of caudal fin 4,40 m. 4,57 m. 1 74 ra. 



Length of pectoral fin from anterior börder of axilla 2,42 m. 2, so 111. 82 111. 



Distance from tip to tip of ilukes 5,43 m. 5,66 m. 1,47 111. 



It is of interest to compare these measurements when reduced to percentages 

 of the total length with the corresponding ones from the Nordcaper.' This is facilit- 

 ated by the tables published in True's (20) valuable work on »the Whalebone 

 Whales of the Western Atlantic». There are recorded, for instance, the relative di- 

 mensions of the pectoral fin of no less than six ' Nordcapers as well from european 

 as american coasts, and the percentages expressing the length of this organ com- 

 pared with the total length of this animal is found to vary from 14, o to 16,3. The 

 corresponding percentages for the southern Black whale as represented by the three 

 specimens measured above are resp. 17, i; 18,4 and 19,6 (tbe foetus). Consequently 

 not one of these fall within the range of the known variation of the Nordcaper. 

 The discrepancy thus found is the more important as True's calculations have been 

 obtained from so many as six specimens of a length varying from 26,9 feet to 48 

 feet, and mine from two adult specimens as well as from a foetus. It is evident 

 from this comparison that the southern Black whale is provided with longer pectoral 

 tins than the Nordcaper. The shape of the pectoral fin of the adult southern Black 

 whale is seen in Pl. VII fig. 32. The outline of the same organ of a foetus is re- 

 presented in fig. 4 A. A comparison of the breadth of the caudal fin from tip to 

 tip of the flukes leads to a similar result as the comparison of the pectorals. Ac- 

 cording to Trtje (20) the percentage expressing the measurement of breadth of the 

 flukes compared with the total length of the Nordcaper varies in 9 specimens from 

 27,3 to 35,i. In the three specimens of southern Black whale the same percentage 

 is resp. 38,5; 37,2 and 35,o (the foetus). This indicates larger flukes in the latter 

 than in the Nordcaper. The shape of the flukes of a foetus of the southern Black 

 whale is represented in fig. 4 B. The other measurements are not, I regret to say, 

 directly comparable, but I think that those already quoted may be sufficient to 

 prove that the Nordcaper and the southern Black whale are not wholly identical, 

 even if they are nearly related. 



The length of the male organ of the Black whale first shot (tot. 1. 14,io m.) 



1 A seventh is as uncertain not counted nere. 



