1532 Cetacea. 



tal occurrence ; so that the only alternative left them was to compare 

 descriptions, and often very diffuse ones, made by others, instead of 

 judging personally on the objects themselves; and this, according 

 to my views, has led them into error. 



There are even authors, who have seen nothing but more or less 

 considerable parts of the skeleton of these whales, and I myself have 

 not been fortunate enough to examine the bones of more than two 

 specimens. 



Having, however, read all the works which I could find in which 

 these interesting Mammalia are spoken of, I have come to the conclu- 

 sion, and am fully persuaded (although it is only with unwillingness 

 I am ever induced to contradict the writings of learned naturalists), 

 that several very distinct species of the genus Baleinoptera exist in 

 reality, but I must at the same time own my inability in the present 

 state of my knowledge of these animals to separate them as clearly as 

 I could wish.* 



Some of the distinctive characters of the species inhabiting northern 

 Europe are according to my observations the following. 



The first species, which attains the largest size, has the baleen en- 

 tirely black, and rather long ; the pectoral fins of one single colour 

 on the outside ; the end of the upper jaw furnished with a terminal 

 tuft of thread-like whalebone in the adult (only ?) ; the back black or 

 blackish (more or less maculate in the old ones) ; the folds of the tho- 

 rax of the same colour as the surrounding skin ; the body much 

 lengthened; the pectoral fins placed further back than the anterior 

 third of the body ; the upper lip of the same colour as the back, and 

 the vertebrae about sixty-three ? in number, f 



The second species, which is the smallest of the genus, has the ba- 

 leen entirely white and very short ; never any tuft at the extremity of 

 the upper mandible ; the pectoral fins have a white spot on the out- 

 side ; the thoracic folds are tinted with red ; the back is greenish ; 

 the body oval-elongate ; the pectoral fins placed before the anterior 

 third of the body ; the upper lip always spotted with red, and the ver- 

 tebrae about forty-eight ? in number. J 



* Eschricht is fully convinced of the existence of four northern species. See FOrh. 

 vid. de Scand. Natf. 1843, p. 203. 



f This is the Rorqualus horcalis, Cuv., to which belong the specimen stranded at. 

 Ostend in 1827, and some others. 



+ This is the true Baleina rostrata, Fair. ; Baleinoptera acuto- rostra ta, Lacep. ; 

 Rorqualus rostratus of some authors; Rorqualus minor, Knox ; and to which belongs 

 the one mentioned in this paper. 



