3i6 THE BOOK OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM 



Generally speaking, Whales are not ferocious creatures, although 

 perhaps exception should be made in the case of the Killer, which 

 exhibits a fierce disposition. They travel about for the most part 

 in "schools," and among the smaller members (Porpoises and Dol- 

 phins) we find that, on occasions, a "school" will be comprised of 

 several thousands of individuals. 



It will be observed from what has already been written, there 

 are two distinct groups of these marine animals, one consisting 

 of the true, or Whalebone Whales, in which there are no teeth, 

 and the second comprising the Toothed Whales, which possess 

 teeth, at any rate in the lower jaw. Beyond these distinguishing 

 features there are others which are of such a distinct character that 

 it is considered by one of our greatest authorities on this subject 

 reasonable to suppose that "the Whalebone and the Toothed Whales 

 have originated independently of one another from totally distinct 

 groups of terrestrial mammals." 



We may now consider the chief features of interest in regard 

 to a few selected species of these animals, and having given a sketch 

 of the life history and general structure of the Greenland Whale 

 as a typical example of these monsters, it will not be necessary to 

 repeat the points to which attention has already been directed when 

 dealing individually with the different species hereafter. 



Among the Right Whales the Greenland holds an honoured 

 place, and having recently considered the claims of this species in 

 some detail, we can, after pointing out that it occupies the foremost 

 position among the members of the order Cetacea, and the genus 

 Balaena, pass on to remark that although the Whale which inhabits 

 the South Atlantic has been considered a distinct species from the 

 one inhabiting the North Atlantic, a remark which also applies to 

 the beasts found in the North and South Pacific, it is considered 

 by competent authorities that all these forms are only local races 

 of one widely distributed species. All these forms claim kinship 

 with the Right Whales, and it is also interesting to notice that 

 fossil remains of some members of this genus have been discovered 

 in England and also on the Continent. 



PIGMY WHALE — The Pigmy Whale — so called because it does 

 not attain a length of more than twenty feet — need not detain us, 

 as it is a rare species which is found in the seas round New Zea- 

 land, Australia and South America. This brings us to the Grev 

 Whale. 



