KILLED IN THE FRITH OF FOUTH. 



377 



Very few other remarks remain to be made by 

 me. 



Linnaeus ranked the beluga under his general 

 and ill-defined genus Balaena, by the title of B. 

 albicans. Otho Fabricius, in the Fauna Groenlan- 

 dica, very properly transferred it to the genus 

 Delphinus, retaining the specific name albicans. 

 Gmelin, in his edition of the Linnsean System, 

 placed it also under the genus Delphinus, but dis- 

 tinguished it by the specific name leucas. He ob- 

 serves, that it seldom ascends rivers, is gregarious, 

 of a white colour ; but, when young, " parumper 

 nigricans." De la Cepede considered the want of 

 a dorsal fin in the beluga as a sufficient generic 

 mark of distinction, and therefore constituted a 

 new genus, entitled Delphinapterus, which is an 

 expressive name, signifying Dolphin without a fin, 

 or back-fin. He describes two species; D. beluga, 

 with the opening of the mouth small, the teeth ob- 

 tuse at their points ; and D. senedetta, with a 

 large mouth, and the teeth pointed. Our speci- 

 men belongs to the former. 



M. De La Cepede has collected from books 

 almost every previous notice concerning the history 

 of the beluga. To his ample details only a few 

 gleanings can be added. 



It may very generally be observed, that it is a 

 native of high northern latitudes ; it abounds in the 

 seas near Disco Island in Greenland, and is not 

 uncommon off Spitzbergen, in latitude 77°. Mr 



