T EEB 
AMERICAN NATURALIST. 
Vol. VII.— JANUARY, 1873.—No. 1. 
~CEZEMLS)OD2-> 
NOTES ON THE RIGHT AND SPERM WHALES. 
BY PROF. N. S. SHALER. 
Tue following notes on the habits of the right whale were taken 
down in a conversation with Captain John Pease of Edgartown, 
an old whaler, whose powers of observation as well as of accurate 
and clear statement I have rarely known equalled. As far as 
possible these statements have been collated with those of other 
experienced, whalers. 
All of the south latitude right whales are without calves up to 
July Ist; the females are found in the bays about this time. 
The calves all come at once, it being but two or three days be- 
tween the bearing of the first and last calves. None are found 
with the herd up to the 1st of July and every female has her calf 
by the 3d or 4th of the month. 
The right and humpback whales are very fond of their young, 
taking no care of themselves in their efforts to save it; the sperm 
whales, on the other hand, are quite without affection as far as can 
be determined by their behavior. . 
Sperm whales have leaders of the herd which they follow wie ae 
certain obstinacy; these leaders seem to give the alarm to the 
others. No such subordination can be observed among right 
whales. Sperm whales, as is well known, have the males very _ : o 
~ mach larger than the females, while the reverse is the ease among oe 
_ the right whales. This is interesting in connection with the fact 
that the male sperm whales struggle soma together, while the re. 
