ON CETACEA STRANDED ON THE BRITISH COASTS. 



147 



7. Notes on Cetacea stranded on the British Coasts during 

 1913-1917. By Sidney F. Harmer, Sc.D., F.R.S., 

 F.Z.S., Keeper of Zoology in the British Museum 

 (Natural History) *. 



[Received March 19, 1918 : Read March 19, 1918.] 



The stranding of specimens of Cetacea on various parts of the 

 British Coasts is no new tiling, but in the majority of cases the 

 evidence derivable from these occurrences has not been sufficiently 

 used. About six years ago the Trustees of the British Museum 

 decided to examine this evidence more systematically ; and an 

 arrangement was accordingly made with the Board of Trade 

 and with the Admiralty, by which instructions were issued to 

 Receivers of Wreck and members of H.M. Coastguard that the 

 stranding of specimens of Whales should be reported by telegram 

 to the Museum. These orders were given during 1912, and the 

 system had become fully operative by the beginning of 1913. 

 The notes here recorded give a summary of the results thus 

 obtained. 



The telegrams received are based on leaflets which were 

 distributed on behalf of the Museum, calling attention to some 

 of the more obvious characters by which the species of Cetacea 

 can be distinguished. They have generally been sufficient to 

 give some preliminary idea of what the stranded animal was 

 likely to be; and further evidence has been obtained, wherever 

 possible, by means of correspondence and by securing the 

 specimen in question, or some part of it, when this could be done. 

 A written .Report, on a, form requesting answers to certain 

 specified questions has generally proved very instructive, 

 particularly in cases where the answers have been supplemented 

 by sketches or photographs. 



The species of Whalebone Whales can usually be distinguished 

 by the characters of their whalebone or baleen ; and a special 

 effort has accordingly been made, in each such case, to obtain a 

 blade of baleen. In the case of the Toothed Whales, the receipt 

 of a lower jaw is often sufficient for specific determination ; but 

 in a number of instances the entire head and flippers have been 

 secured, or even the entire animal or its skeleton. The records 

 may accordingly claim to have been based on satisfactory 

 evidence, in the majority of instances in which a positive result 

 has been recorded. 



During the five years under review, fifteen species out of some 

 twenty generally recognized as British have been recorded. The 

 species which have not at present been reported are the Atlantic 

 Right Whale or Nordkaper (Balwna glacialis Bonn.), the Blue 

 Whale or Sibbald's Rorqual (Balcenoptera nmsculus L.), the 



* Published by permission of the Trustees of the British Museum. 



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