148 



OEDERS OP MAMMALS— WHALES AND PORPOISES 



times completely ignored, and the quest settles 

 down to a hunt for whalebone alone. 



Whale oil is no longer the valuable commodity- 

 it was forty years ago, but the hunt for baleen 

 will ultimately exterminate all the whales of this 

 Family. The Bow-Head Whale is of medium 

 size, rarely attaining 65 feet, and usually runs 

 under 50; yet it is uncommonly rich, both in 

 baleen and oil. A large whale of this species is 

 said to yield 275 barrels of oil, and 3,500 pounds 

 of whalebone. 



On the coast of Newfoundland there are now 

 five whaling stations which during the summer 

 season do a thriving business. Small whales of 

 two or three species are killed in adjacent waters, 

 towed to the stations, and hauled up on ways* 

 In a single day a whale forty feet long is com- 

 pletely worked up, and practically every part of 

 the animal yields a commercially-valuable prod- 

 uct. 



When a whale is struck by a harpoon, it dives 

 deeply to escape its foes, and remains under 

 water as long as possible. The comfortable 

 period for a whale to remain under water is fif- 

 teen minutes, but in feeding below the surface, 

 ^his is often extended to twenty-five minutes. 

 Harpooned whales sometimes descend 300 feet 

 and lie on the muddy bottom of a shallow sea 

 for a period of from fifty minutes to an hour and 

 twenty minutes. 



But whalers know that their victim must 

 sooner or later come to the surface, or drown. 

 As a whale reaches the surface, it immediately 

 discharges its breath from the blow-holes situated 

 on top of its head. A whale does not spout 

 water, but the breath which comes from its lungs 

 is so heavily laden with moisture that at a Uttle 

 distance it looks like water, especially when it 

 curves over and falls into the sea. It is this 

 "spouting" which reveals the whale to its enemy 

 in the "crow's-nest" of the whaling vessel, and 

 causes him to shout joyously to those on deck, 

 "There she blows!" 



In addition to the above, the most important 

 species of baleen whales are these : 



The Right Whale (Balaena glacialis), of the 

 cool waters around the north pole and the Atlan- 

 tic Ocean, north and south, attains 70 feet, but 

 usually runs under 50 feet. 



The Pacific Right Whale (Balaena sieboldii) 

 inhabits the North Pacific. 



The Humpbaclc Whale (Megaptera nodosa), 

 of the Atlantic, off the United States coast, 

 is the species most frequently seen from the 

 decks of passenger steamers and stranded on 

 our coast. Its usual length is from 45 to 60 

 feet. 



The Finback Whale (Balaenoptera physdus), 

 of the North Atlantic coast, attains 60 feet, but 

 yields little oil, and is difficult to kill. 



The California Gray Whale (Rachianectes 

 glaucus), from the arctic seas to Lower Cali- 

 fornia, attains 45 feet. It is fond of shallow 

 water, and is savage and dangerous. 



THE SPERM WHALE FAMILY. 



Physeteridae. 



It is impossible to give in a few words a clear 

 and adequate conception of the various localities 

 inhabited by the great Sperm Whale.' It may 

 be said, however, that it is a habitant of the 

 warm seas of the globe, from the North Atlantic, 

 around Cape Horn, to the North Pacific. 



The Sperm Whale has an enormous, square- 

 ended head, which constitutes one-third of its 

 entire bulk. Under this great mass is the lower 

 jaw of solid bone, shaped like a letter Y, the 

 stem being fully armed with a double row of 

 huge, conical teeth. In comparison with the 

 great bulk of the head, the lower jaw seems ab- 

 surdly small; but it is a formidable weapon, 

 and whalers dread it. 



In seizing a whale-boat, a man struggling in 

 the water, or any other dangerous enemy, a 

 Sperm Whale turns on its side or back, like a 

 shark, in order to bring its lower jaw over its 

 victim. 



The largest Sperm Whales have measured 

 from 80 to 84 feet. At birth they are from 11 to 

 14 feet long. Their food consists of fish of vari- 

 ous kinds, and also squid. A young whale, only 

 twenty feet long, which was taken on the coast 

 of Cornwall, had in its stomach about 300 mack- 

 erel. The head of the Sperm Whale yields sperm 

 oil, spermaceti, and teeth which are valuable for 

 ivory. A substance called ambergris, of much 

 value to druggists and perfumers, is obtained 

 from the intestinal canal. 



The Sperm Whale Porpoise, or "Pygmy 

 Sperm Whale" (Ko'gi-a), is found on both the 

 ' Phys'e-ter mac-ro-ceph'a-lvs. 



