'?A2 



MUSEUM OF ANIMATED NATURE. 



Whales."] 



six to eight, broad ; their situation on the sides of the 

 animal being at one-fifth of its length from the 

 snout. The breadth of the tail is from fifteen to 

 twenty inches. There is no dorsal fin, but a sharp 

 ridge runs down the centre of the back, the edge of 

 which is generally found to be rough and worn, as 

 if by rubbing against the ice. At an early age 

 the narwhal is blackish-grey on the back, with 

 numerous darker spots and markings running into 

 each other, forming a general dusky-black sur- 

 face. The sides are almost white, with dusky and 

 more open markings: the under surface is white. 

 In adult specimens the ground-colour of the back is 

 yellowish-white, with markings varying from dark 

 grey to dusky-black, and of a roundish or oval figure, 

 with interspaces of white or yellowish-white between 

 them. The skin resembles that of the common 

 Greenland whale (Balaena mysticetus), but is thin- 

 ner. The female narwhal produces a single young 

 one at a birth, which she nourishes with milk for 

 several months. 



To the rapidity, the great powers, and the ferocity 

 of the narwhal when attacked, many writers have 

 borne testimony. Its form is admirably adapted for 

 cleaving the waters, and we can well believe that 

 the shock of its weapon, driven full tilt against an 

 enemy, must produce a terrible effect. The ribs of 

 the stoutest boat would be transfixed by the dint of 

 such a blow, far more easily than was ever shield 

 by the lance of knight in battle or tournament. 

 Several instances have indeed been known in w r hich 

 the animal has plunged his w r eapon deep into the 

 thick oak timbers of a ship, when it has fortunately 

 snapped short, the fragment remaining fixed in the 

 orifice, so as to plug it up. A portion of wood 

 taken from the hull of a ship with a piece of nar- 

 whal's tusk firmly imbedded in it came some few 

 years ago under our own inspection. It is probably 

 only in defence of the females and their young, 

 unless indeed when attacked himself, that the male, 

 narwhal thus rushes against ships or boats ; for we 

 utterly discredit the usual accounts of its causeless 

 and indiscriminate attacks upon any object which 

 approaches within its range. Doubtless when 

 wounded and harassed it becomes desperate ; and 

 its power, its velocity, and weapon combine to 

 render it formidable. 



The narwhal is gregarious, associating in troops of 

 from six or eight to twenty or more ; and numbers 

 are often seen clustered together, both in the open 

 sea, and in bays and inlets free from the ice, forming 

 a compact phalanx, moving gently and slowly along. 

 Under such circumstances the independent move- 

 ments of each individual are necessarily embar- 

 rassed, so that a considerable slaughter may be 

 easily effected among them. When attacked at 

 such a time, the hind ranks, instead of turning 

 against their assailants, press upon those before, 

 sliding their long weapons over the glossy backs of 

 their leaders, and all becomes disorder and con- 

 fusion. Opportunities of this kind are welcome to 

 the Greenlanders, 1o whom the narwhal is an im- 

 portant animal. Independently of the oil, which 

 the narwhal yields in considerable quantity and of 

 excellent quality, the flesh is much esteemed by 

 these people as food, and eaten both fresh and in a 

 dried and smoked state, being prepared over the 

 fire of their huts. The tendons of the muscles are 

 useful in the preparation of thin but tough cordage ; 

 and Duhamel states (see his ' Traite des Peches') 

 that several membranous sacs are obtained from the 

 gullet made use of as parts of their fishing appa- 

 ratus. The ivory spear, or tusk, the Greenlanders 

 employ in various household and economical pur- 

 poses instead of wood, and in the manufacture of 

 weapons, as darts or arrows, &c. W hen struck by 

 a harpoon, the narwhal dives with great velocity, 

 and in the same manner as the whale, but not to 

 the same extent. In general it descends about 200 

 fathoms ; and on returning to the surface, is de- 

 spatched by a whale-lance without any difficulty. 

 The blubber is about three inches in thickness, and 

 invests the whole body : it affords about half a ton 

 of oil. 



The narwhal may be registered among; the occa- 

 sional visitants to the British shores. Of its visits, 

 however, only three instances are on record, as far 

 as we can learn. The first is recorded by Nicolas 

 Tulpius in 1648. The second is of one killed, in 

 1800, near Boston in Lincolnshire, and said to have 

 been twenty-five feet in length. The third instance 

 occurred in 1808, at the Sound of Weesdale, in Shet- 

 land. 



1092.— The Beluga 



(Delpldnapterus Lencas, Pall.). The genus Del- 

 phinapterus is characterized by the presence of a 

 dorsal fin. Head small, and blunt; teeth variable 

 in number. The Beluga (White Fish, or White Whale) 

 is a native of the high northern latitudes, and is one 

 of the most beautiful, confident, and active of its 

 race. Its colour is clear milk-white, sometimes 

 tinned with a rose-colour or a slight wash of yellow, 



and the skin is very soft, smooth, and slippery. It 

 associates in small troops or families, and is in the 

 habit of following and surrounding boats or ships, 

 gambolling like the dolphin around them ; or chasing 

 its finny prey, in quest of which it often ascends the 

 mouths of rivers, occasionally to a considerable dis- 

 tance. During the intense severity of the winter, 

 the beluga is said to migrate southwards ; this jour- 

 ney cannot, however, be to any great extent, as it 

 very rarely occurs in the sea around the most 

 northern portion of the British Isles. Indeed we do 

 not know of more than one instance on record of 

 this species visiting our coasts ; we refer to the in- 

 dividual taken, in the summer of 1815, in the Frith 

 of Forth, where it had been observed for nearly 

 three months ascending with the flood-tide and 

 regularly descending with the ebb. This individual, 

 as is proved by the time of the year in which it was 

 seen, was a stray wanderer from its native latitudes, 

 and not on a regular journey of migration. The 

 flesh of this animal is eaten by the Greenlanders 

 and other people of the boreal regions. Crantz 

 says it is as red as beef, and of somewhat similar 

 flavour : Pallas, that it is black. The carcass yields 

 excellent oil, and it is principally for the sake of 

 this that the beluga is hunted. It is sometimes in- 

 tercepted by nets extended across the inlet, or 

 stream it has entered, and attacked with lances 

 while endeavouring to force its return : on other 

 occasions it is harpooned, and sometimes even 

 caught by means of hooks baited with fish. The 

 female produces one or two young at. a birth, to- 

 wards which she displays the strongest attachment; 

 they follow her in all her movements, and do not 

 quit her until they are of considerable size. Cuvier 

 states that the teeth are nine in number on each 

 side, above and below. Mr. Bell states that, in a 

 cranium in his possession, there are eight teeth in 

 the upper and six in the lower jaw, on each side ; 

 but that, as two have evidently fallen from the 

 former, there must have been ten originally. Aged 

 individuals are often found without any teeth in the 

 upper jaw. The beluga measures, when adult, 

 seventeen or eighteen feet in length. That caught 

 in the Frith of Forth measured thirteen feet four 

 inches, and nearly nine feet in circumference at the 

 thickest part, viz. the centre of the body, whence 

 it tapers both to the head and to the tail. 



Family Catodontid,*e (P/ryseteridce, Bell). This 

 family, which includes the Cachalots, is charac- 

 terized by the immoderate size of the head, which 

 equals one third the length of the body, and termi- 

 nates in a deep, abrupt, truncate snout, advancing 

 beyond the lower jaw, which is narrow, the two 

 rami being in contact for the greater part of their 

 length, and armed each with a row of compressed, 

 solid, conical teeth, at equal distances fitting into 

 cavities in the upper jaw, which is either destitute 

 of teeth, or merely furnished with a few in a rudi- 

 mentary state and almost covered by the gum. The 

 blow-holes open externally by a single orifice. The 

 tongue is small and pointed. 



1093. — The Common Cachalot, or Spermaceti 

 Whale 



(Physeter macrocephahis, Linn. ; Physeter Catodoti, 

 Linn. ; Catodon trumpo, Lacepede ; Blunt-headed 

 Cachalot, Pennant). The Cachalot is one of the 

 mightiest of the Cetacea, the adult male measuring 

 upwards of seventy feet in length ; and from its 

 powers, and not unirequent paroxysms of fury, is 

 one of the most dangerous of the monsters of the 

 deep which the daring sailor is called upon to 

 combat. 



The cachalot roams the ocean at pleasure, and is 

 seen in all latitudes, but its native regions may be 

 considered as the arctic and antarctic seas.* It 

 would seem that the animal is gregarious, and is 

 generally seen in parties consisting of half-grown 

 males, or of females attended by their young, and 

 guarded by one or two males of the largest size. 

 When solitary cachalots are observed, they inva- 

 riably prove to be aged males. 



According to Mr. F. De Bell Bennett (fZool. 

 Proceeds.,' 1837, p. 39), the speed of an alarmed 

 cachalot does not exceed from eight to ten miles 

 an hour, though, when harpooned, its temporary 

 velocity may "be estimated from twelve to fifteen 

 miles. When thus flying from pursuit, the huge 

 animal moves with a regular and majestic, although 

 rapid pace, and with a gently leaping gait ; the an- 

 terior and upper portions of the colossal head >re 

 raised above the water, and a portion of the back is 

 also frequently exhibited. When parties are pur- 

 sued, they often move in lines like a troop of horse, 

 and exert all their movements, and descend, rise, 

 and even spout in unison. When about to plunge 



* Baron Cuvier considers that only one species of spermaceti whale, 

 or cachalot, exists. Ami Fred. Cuvier adopts his opinion, with some 

 doubt as to whether the southern cachalot mav not be distinct, which 

 Mr. llell regards as being the 1'act. As the elucidation of doubtful 

 species is not our present object, we leave the question open, and 

 speak of the cachalot in general terms as a native of the Northern and 

 Southern oceans. 



deep, the cachalot assumes a vertical position, 

 raising the caudal fin, or "flukes," perpendicularly 

 in the air, an action that is performed leisurely, and 

 one that distinguishes this from most other species 

 of Cetacea. This evolution is not, however, in- 

 variably performed, since, when tranquilly feeding, 

 or carelessly avoiding a boat, the cachalot will 

 descend very gradually, lowering itself, or, as it is 

 technically termed, " settling down." 



The ordinary length of time which the cachalot 

 remains under water, when alarmed or wounded, is 

 three-quarters of an hour, but in some instances the 

 time has extended, it is said, to an hour and a 

 quarter. 



The chace of this animal is very hazardous, for 

 although generally the troop fly on the appearance 

 of danger, yet, when one is wounded, the others 

 often come to the rescue, especially in the case of 

 the females, which mutually assist each other ; while 

 the males, as Mr. Bennett affirms, commonly make 

 a speedy retreat. One of the latter, however, if 

 attacked and infuriated, is extremely formidable, 

 and will rush with immense velocity, head foremost, 

 against a boat, shivering it to pieces, or, lashing 

 with its tail, will cut it asunder, scattering the hap- 

 less mariners, some, perhaps, struck dead, others 

 maimed, on the surface of the rolling ocean. Oc- 

 currences of this kind are indeed numerous, and 

 many a thrilling narrative of the ''hair-breadth 

 'scapes," and of loss of men and boats, in the close 

 encounter with this giant of the waters, can an old 

 South Sea whaler tell, and many have been recorded, 

 which of themselves would fill a goodly and not 

 uninteresting volume. Not only are the boats in 

 jeopardy, but the " whaling vessel " itself is notse- 

 cure : — Mr. Bell refers to an authenticated instance 

 of an American ship of large size being stove in and 

 foundered by a blow from a gigantic male cachalot 

 rushing head foremost against it. 



The food of the cachalot consists of seals, and 

 fishes of a large size, which it pursues with great 

 pertinacity ; but it would appear that a large spe- 

 cies of cuttle-fish (Octopus) forms its principal nu- 

 triment. 



We have already noticed the magnitude of the head 

 of the present species, and we may here observe that 

 this magnitude is not owing to any extraordinary 

 development of the skull : the maxillary and inter- 

 maxillary bones are indeed prolonged, but the 

 cranial portion is small, and rises abruptly (see 

 Fig. 1094, Skull of the Cachalot in profile). If, how- 

 ever, we look at the upper surface of the skull 

 (Fig. 1095), we find the top deeply concave, with a 

 margin continued along the outer edge of each 

 maxillary bone. It is in this concavity principally 

 that the substance termed spermaceti, or more pro- 

 perty cetine, is lodged, and that in such immense 

 quantity as to give to the head its extraordinary 

 size and figure. This substance, in a semi-fluid 

 state, is contained in a tissue of cells, not only 

 filling up the concavity of the surface of the skull, 

 but giving to the head a singular elevation, the 

 whole being invested by a dense cartilaginous ex- 

 pansion. Cetine is also found in cells along the 

 back and in other parts of the body. This cetine 

 exists mixed with oil, and when the whale is killed, 

 a hole is made in the outer and upper part of the 

 head, and the oleaginous fluid is baled out with 

 buckets. The first process is the separation of the 

 oil by means of draining and squeezing; the im- 

 pure cetine is then put into barrels, in the state of 

 a yellow unctuous mass, and is afterwards further 

 purified by the following process: — "The mass is 

 put into hair or woollen bags, and pressed between 

 plates of iron in a screw-press, until it becomes 

 hard and brittle ; it is then broken into small pieces 

 and thrown into boiling water, where it mells and 

 the impurities are separated from it. After being 

 cooled and taken from the first water, it is put into 

 a boiler of clean water, and a weak solution of 

 potash is gradually added. This is thrice repeated, 

 after which the whole is poured into coolers, when 

 the spermaceti concretes into a white semicrystal- 

 Jized mass, and on being cut into small pieces ex- 

 hibits a beautiful flaky appearance, so well known 

 as belonging to the spermaceti of commerce. - ' An 

 ordinary-sized whale will yield twelve large barrels 

 of crude spermaceti. 



Like other whales, the cachalot is clothed with a 

 layer of blubber, but in less abundance than in the 

 common whale (Balama mysticetas). The oil pro- 

 cured from it, however, is thinner and more valuable. 

 Fig. 1096 represents in outline, a, the spermaceti 

 whale, with the sections marked for flencing ; b, the 

 anterior aspect of the head ; c, the harpoon ; d, the 

 lance. 



There is another substance produced by the ca- 

 chalot, known in commerce under the name of am- 

 bergris. This substance, in the form of opake 

 greyish masses, marbled with darker tints, and some- 

 what hard and brittle, is found floating in many parts 

 of the sea, or thrown up on the shore. It is most 

 abundantin the neighbourhood of the Moluccas and 



