238 
Sir Everard Home on 
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES. 
Plate IV. contains four figures, representing different 
views of the left hind flipper of the walrus, diminished to 
one-fourth the natural size. 
As the skin of the animal is very thick and unyielding, and 
had been for so long a time in strong brine, the parts were 
much shrunk and corrugated ; but even in this state they 
showed that the palm of the flipper formed a concavity, which 
had the appearance of a cup, when the great and little toe 
were made to encircle the others. 
In this state of the parts this concavity was thrown into 
longitudinal rugae, so that the real size could not be ascer- 
tained, the span from the point of the great toe to the end of 
the little toe not exceeding twelve inches. 
Figs. 1 and 2 represent the flipper, with the palm upon the 
ground, in the expanded and contracted state. 
Figs. 3 and 4 represent the palm in these two states, with 
the rugae formed by the skin. 
Plate V. shows the internal structure of this flipper, after 
the thick skin thrown into rugae upon the palm was dissected 
off. The flipper now lost all appearance of a foot, and 
took on that of the hand of a giant, so far as respected 
the bones and muscles, differing indeed in having a web co- 
vering all the other parts, and extending beyond the point of 
the thumb and fingers. The span now, instead of being 
twelve inches, became twenty-eight ; and although this 
figure is upon the same scale as those in Plate IV., the span 
is seven inches. 
