(A) Ground Floor.
Bird Gallery.[8]
The ground floor is entered from the west side (left hand) of the central hall, near the main entrance of the building. The long gallery, extending the entire length of the front of the wing as far as the west pavilion, is assigned to the exhibited collection of Birds, the study-series of the same group being kept in cabinets in a room behind.
Systematic Series in Wall-cases.
The wall-cases contain mounted specimens of all the principal genera, placed in systematic order, beginning with the Crows and Birds of Paradise on the left hand on entering, and ending with the Ostriches, Emus, etc., on the right.
British Museum (Natural History)
Ground Floor.
Fig. 15.—The Great Auk or Gare-Fowl (Plautus, or Alca, impennis), and its egg.
Among the multitude of species exhibited in this gallery, which form, however, but a small proportion of the different kinds of Birds known to inhabit the globe, only a few of the more striking can be mentioned. The various types of the Birds-of-Prey are very fully represented: from the Condor of the Andes, the large Sea-Eagle of Bering Strait, and the Great Eagle-Owl of Europe (all of which are placed in separate cases), to the Dwarf Falcon in case 53, which is not much larger than a sparrow, and preys upon insects. Among the large group of Perching-Birds, attention may be directed to the cases of Birds of Paradise and Bower-Birds in the first bay on the left. In separate cases in the sixth bay on the opposite side of the gallery are placed skeletons of the Dodo and Solitaire, large Pigeon-like birds with wings too small for flight, once inhabiting the islands of Mauritius and Rodriguez, respectively, but now extinct. Other cases on the right-hand side of the gallery are occupied by the Game-Birds, and the Wading and Swimming Birds. Here may be noticed a nearly complete series of the genera of Pheasants and Pigeons, showing the various forms. Special attention may be directed to the Great Auk ([fig. 15]), from the Northern Atlantic, which became extinct only in the last century. Casts of the eggs ([fig. 16]) of this curious bird are also exhibited. A case in the 7th bay contains a series of Penguins, flightless birds which may be regarded as representing the northern Auks and Guillemots in the southern oceans. Particularly interesting is the great Emperor Penguin, which lays its eggs and rears its young in winter amidst the ice of the Antarctic. Most of the specimens exhibited were obtained during the British Antarctic Expedition of 1839–43, under the command of Captain Sir James Clark Ross.
Other noteworthy types are the Great Bustard, once an inhabitant of England, and the Flamingos; a pair of the latter being exhibited with their nest.
In the first two bays on the right side of the gallery are placed specimens of the Ostrich group, characterised by the flat or raft-like form of the breast-bone. Owing to the rudimentary character of their wings, these Birds lack the power of flight. They include the largest existing Birds, the Ostriches, Emus, and Cassowaries, as well as the small Kiwis (Apteryx) of New Zealand, together with the extinct Moas (Dinornis, etc.), of the same country, and the Roc (Æpyornis) of Madagascar. A fossil egg of the latter is placed alongside eggs of the existing species of the group.
Fig. 16.—Egg of the Great Auk or Gare-Fowl: Size of nature.
Groups of British Birds and Nests.
Down the middle line of the gallery, as well as in many of the bays, are placed groups showing the nesting-habits of various species of British birds. The great value of these groups consists in their absolute truthfulness to nature. The surroundings are not selected by chance or from imagination, but in every case are carefully executed reproductions of those that were present round the individual nest. When it has been possible, the actual rocks, trees, or grass, have been preserved, but in cases where these could not be used, they have been accurately modelled from nature. Great care has also been taken in preserving the natural form and characteristic attitudes of the Birds themselves. Among the more attractive cases are, near the centre of the gallery, a pair of Puffins feeding their single young one, and Black-throated Divers with their eggs in a hollow in the grass on the edge of a mountain-loch in Sutherland. Hen-harriers—the male grey and the female brown—are shown with their nest among the heather from the moorland of the same county. On the left of these is a Peregrine Falcon’s eyrie, on the ledge of a rocky cliff, containing three white downy nestlings. Near by are various species of Ducks, notably the Red-headed Pochard on the sedgy border of a Norfolk mere. In the last bay but one on the right side is a nest of the Heron, in a fir-tree, with the two old birds and three nearly fledged young. Various species of Gulls and a particularly beautiful group of Arctic Terns from the Shetland Islands are exhibited in the middle line towards the west end of the gallery and in the eighth and ninth bays. In the eighth bay on the right side and in the adjoining passage are Plovers, Sandpipers, Snipes, etc., some of which (especially the Ringed and Kentish Plovers) show the wonderful adaptation of the colouring of the eggs and young birds to their natural surroundings for the purpose of concealment. In the second passage leading to the Coral-gallery are Ptarmigan and Capercaillie from Scotland, and in the adjacent part of the middle line Wood-Pigeons and Turtle-Doves building their simple, flat nests of sticks in ivy-clad trees. In the fourth, sixth and seventh bays on the left are Sand-Martins and Kingfishers, showing, by means of sections of the banks of sand or earth, the form and depth of the hole in which the eggs are placed; and also nests of the Swift, Swallow, and House-Martin, all in portions of human habitations.
Pavilion, with British Land and Fresh-water Vertebrates.[9]
The “pavilion” at the west end of the Bird-gallery is devoted to the exhibition of the land and fresh-water Vertebrated Animals of the British Islands. The larger Mammals and Fishes occupy the wall-case on the north side, which is surmounted with horns. In the two pairs of centre cases is exhibited the series of British Birds, supplemented by the groups, to which reference has been made already. The wall-case on the north side of the archway contains a group of Gannets and other sea-birds from the Bass Rock in the Firth of Forth. On the opposite side are two striking groups with the surroundings true to nature, the one of the Golden Eagle and the other of the Buzzard, both taken in Scotland. Other groups in the pavilion display the Kestrel, the Peregrine Falcon, and the Merlin amid natural surroundings. Among the Mammals, especial attention may be directed to a case of British Hares and Rabbits. In another case may be seen a female Badger and her young; in a third is a group of Otters; in a fourth a vixen Fox with her cubs; in a fifth a Mole-hill with its inhabitants; in a sixth a pair of Martens; in a seventh Polecats and their young; while other cases are devoted to Stoats, Weasels, Hedgehogs, Squirrels, Rats, Mice, etc.
Here it may be mentioned that the animal inhabitants of any country or district are collectively termed its “fauna.” The British Islands in this respect belong to the great zoological region called Palæarctic, or Eastern Holarctic, embracing all Europe, the north of Africa, and the western and northern portions of Asia. As in the case of other islands, the species belonging to groups in which the power of locomotion is limited to land or fresh-water are not numerous compared with those inhabiting large continental tracts. Their numbers can only increase under exceptional circumstances, and have a tendency to diminish as the growth of human population and increase of the area of cultivated land gradually reduce their native haunts. In this way the Brown Bear, the Wolf, the Beaver, and the Wild Boar have disappeared from Britain within the historic period, while other species, such as the Badger, Marten, and Wild Cat, with difficulty maintain a more or less precarious existence. All these were originally derived from the mainland of Europe, probably before the formation of the channel which now separates it from Great Britain. The wider and older channel which separates Ireland from Great Britain has been a greater barrier to the emigration of animal life than that between the latter and the Continent, many species (as the Polecat, Wild Cat, Mole, Squirrel, Dormouse, Harvest-Mouse, Water-Rat, Short-tailed Field-Mouse, Brown Hare, Roedeer, as well as Snakes and Toads) never having crossed what is now the Irish Sea, unless by human agency.
On the other hand, those species that have the power of travelling through the air or traversing the ocean are far less fixed in their habitat; and it results from this that the list of so-called “British Birds” receives accessions from time to time from stragglers which find their way from the European continent or Asia, or even across the Atlantic.
Slight but permanent variations from the continental type may be recognised in many native British species, some of the most marked among vertebrated animals being the Irish Stoat, the Squirrel, the Red Grouse, the St. Kilda Wren, the Coal-Tit, the Goldcrest, and several species of fresh-water fishes, mostly belonging to the genera Salmo and Coregonus. Some of the latter, such as the Vendace, the Gwyniad, and their allies, of which specimens are exhibited in the wall-case in the pavilion, have an extremely local distribution, being found only in certain small groups of mountain lakes.
Of the Seals, only two species are really natives of Britain, the Common Seal (Phoca vitulina) and the great Grey Seal (Halichœrus grypus); specimens of both these are shown in the pavilion.
Those desirous of studying more minutely the characteristics of British Mammals should examine the series of skins and skulls exhibited in a special case on the right side of the central west window.
Coral Gallery.[10]
Parallel with the Bird-gallery, on the north side (right on entering), and approached by several passages, is a long narrow gallery containing the collection of Corals and Sponges and allied types. Commencing at the eastern end, some of the lowest forms of animal life are exhibited in the wall-case and table-cases; they belong to a group called Protozoa, and, for the greater part, are so minute, that they can be studied only with the microscope; their structure is therefore illustrated chiefly by means of models and figures. The next divisions of the gallery are occupied by the Sponges, most conspicuous among these being a series showing the variations of the common Bath-Sponge (cases 1 and 2), the beautiful flinty Venus’ Flower-basket or Euplectella ([fig. 17]), the Japanese Glass-rope Sponge or Hyalonema (case 3), and the gigantic Neptune’s Cup or Poterion, of which several specimens are placed on separate stands. Special interest attaches to the case showing the different kinds of Sponges used in commerce.
Fig. 17.—Venus’ Flower-Basket (Euplectella imperialis and E. aspergillum). (One-sixth natural size.)
Fig. 18.—Brain-Coral. (Meandrina cerebriformis).
Nearly the whole of the remainder of the gallery is given up to Corals. In life these organisms display an immense variety of form and colour, sometimes presenting a marvellous resemblance to vegetable growths; but the part exhibited in the gallery is merely the dried, hard, horny, or stony basis or supporting skeleton, either of isolated individuals, or of colonies. Corals are allied to the well-known Sea-anemones of the British and other coasts; the combined skeletons of myriads of these animals form the coral-reefs which constitute the bases of thousands of islands in the Indo-Pacific Ocean. Among the larger reef-making species are the Brain-Corals (Meandrina), one of which is shown in figure 18. Near the west end of the gallery is placed a magnificent specimen of the Black Coral of the Mediterranean (Gerardia savalia), obtained off the coast of the island of Eubœa in the Ægean Sea. The drawing in the case shows a magnified view of the “animals” or polyps of this species as they appear in life. In case 13 are specimens and drawings of the Red Coral (Corallium rubrum), so largely used for ornamental purposes, and also of the crimson Organ-pipe Coral (Tubipora musica). Arranged on shelves on the south wall of the western end of this gallery is a series of Pennatulidæ (Sea-pens, Sea-rushes, or Sea-ropes) preserved in spirit. These Zoophytes live at the bottom of the sea, with their lower ends fixed in the sand and mud; the skeleton being never more than a straight internal rod in addition to innumerable microscopic spicules.
Fig. 19.—Rough Sunfish (Orthagoriscus mola).
Approached through the Coral-gallery, and running backwards at right angles with it, are several galleries containing other portions of the zoological collections.
Fish Gallery.[11]
I. The Fish-gallery is nearest to the central hall, and contains the exhibited portion of the collection of Fishes. The greater number of specimens, preserved in spirit, are, however, placed for safety in a detached building outside the Museum, where they are available for study under special regulations. The gallery contains mounted examples, models, and skeletons of many of the more remarkable members of the class.
Figs. 20 & 21.—Two Deep-Sea Fishes (a. Gastrostomus bairdi and b. Saccopharynx flagellum).
Fig. 22.—Sucker-Fish (Echeneis remora).
The wall-cases on the east side of the gallery (right on entering) contain the fishes with completely bony skeletons (Teleostei); to which division belong by far the greater part of the species now inhabiting the waters of the globe. Large and remarkable examples are placed in separate cases opposite to the wall-cases. As the colours of fishes are very fugitive, and disappear more or less completely after death, most of the mounted examples have been painted. The fishes allied to the Perch, Gurnard, Mackerel, Sword-Fish, Wrasse, Cod, Plaice, Catfish, Salmon, Pike, and Eel are represented by numerous examples. Specially noticeable, so far as size and external form are concerned, are the Sunfishes, Orthagoriscus ([fig. 19]).
Even more strange are several of the species of deep-sea Fishes exhibited in a table-case in the Fish-gallery, which live at depths where the sun’s rays cannot penetrate, and many of which are self-luminous. Two deep-sea Fishes are shown in the accompanying illustrations ([figs. 20] and [21]). From another point of view, special attention may be given to the Sucker-Fish or Remora (Echeneis remora), [fig. 22], which attaches itself by the sucker on the top of its head to the bodies of Fishes or Turtles, or to the bottom of ships. As it attaches itself back-downwards, the under-parts are coloured dark while the back is light; a condition just the reverse of that obtaining in ordinary Fishes.
Fig. 23.—Lower View of the Head of a Saw-Fish. (Pristis antiquorum.)
The western or left side of the gallery is devoted to the exhibition of certain very different types of Fishes, which were much more numerously represented in ancient times than at present. The majority have a cartilaginous skeleton. Among these may be specially mentioned the Bichir of the tropical African rivers, the Gar-Pike of North America, the Sturgeons, the Lung-Fishes (Dipnoi) of South America, Africa, and Australia, the Chimæras, and finally the Sharks and Rays. Among the two latter are included the singular Hammer-headed Shark (Zygœna), and the Saw-Fishes (Pristis), which have long projecting flattened snouts, with a row of teeth arranged something like those of a saw on each side ([fig. 23]). A remarkably large specimen from the coast of British Guiana of a species of this group (Pristis perrotteti) is exhibited. Another very small division of Fishes comprises the Lampreys and Hags, of which a few specimens are shown.
Fig. 24.—The Basking Shark (Selache maxima).
The largest exhibited specimen of the class is the head of a full-grown example of the great Basking Shark (Selache, or Cetorhinus, maxima), [fig. 24], captured on the 2nd of March, 1875, near Shanklin, in the Isle of Wight. The length of the entire specimen was twenty-eight feet, but, as the minute size of the teeth indicates, it is a comparatively harmless fish. A smaller female specimen is suspended from the roof; and below this is placed a model of the skeleton of the same species. Near by is a young specimen of another basking species, the Elephant-Shark (Rhinodon typicus), which when adult is said to attain a length of at least fifty feet. It inhabits the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Models of some of the more remarkable types of extinct Fishes are exhibited in cases on the same side of the gallery.
Insect Gallery.[12]
II. A small gallery is devoted to the group of Arthropoda or Invertebrate animals with jointed limbs, such as Lobsters, Crabs, Spiders, Centipedes, and Insects.
At the south end of this gallery are exhibited specimens of Crabs and Lobsters. Among the former, special attention may be directed to the specimens of the Giant Crab (Macrocheira) of Japan, and also to the Coconut Crab (Birgus latro), [fig. 25], which climbs trees to feed on young cocoanuts, and is related to the Hermit-Crabs. In the central table-cases, besides Crustacea (Crabs, Lobsters, etc.), are displayed representative Scorpions and Spiders, including several examples of the large Bird-eating Spiders of South America.
Fig. 25.—The Coconut Crab (Birgus latro).
The northern half of this gallery is devoted to the exhibited series of Insects. Next to the door on the east side are the nests of White Ants or Termites, while on the opposite side are some remarkable cocoons of social Caterpillars of various Moths, and also a series of preparations showing the metamorphoses or changes undergone by Insects as they grow to maturity. At the sides of the gallery are models of various galls, with drawings of the insects which cause them; and others showing the life-histories of certain Beetles, Bees, and Moths. Beneath a shelf, on the west side, are four cabinets containing a collection of British Butterflies and Moths with their caterpillars, prepared and presented by Lord Walsingham; and near by stands a cabinet containing a collection of the Butterflies and Moths of the British islands formed by the late Mr. William Buckler, most of the specimens in which were bred by him during the preparation of his “Larvæ of British Butterflies and Moths.” Above these are maps illustrating the geographical distribution of certain Beetles (Calosoma, Carabus, Julodis and Stigmodera); actual specimens of the insects being placed in position on the maps. The wall-cases at the end of the gallery are devoted exclusively to the nests of Ants, Wasps, and Bees. On the east wall is a large case containing specimens and drawings explaining the structure of Insects. On the west side, next the Walsingham collection, are cabinets containing a selection of British Insects. Lower down are other cabinets in the series of foreign Butterflies; while foreign Moths and other Insects are arranged in adjacent cabinets. In another part of the gallery are exhibited coloured drawings of a few of the smallest Insects known, namely the Mymaridæ, a group of minute parasitic Hymenoptera; and above is a drawing of a House-Fly, enlarged in the same proportion—thirty diameters—to show the contrast. A few specimens of the insects themselves are placed in the microscope below.
In the table-cases in the middle of the gallery are specimens and illustrations of some of the principal families of Insects, with explanations of the characters by which these may be recognised. The first case (next to the west door) contains an introductory series, and then follow the various orders in sequence commencing with the most primitive forms or Aptera, among which Campodea, a small British insect, may be specially noticed.
The classification of Butterflies, Bees and Ants, and Beetles is shown in the last three cases; and attention may be specially directed to a series of drawings illustrating the transformations of Fleas, Gnats, Midges, etc.
The main collection of insects is kept in cabinets in the “Insect Room” in the basement, but is open to students under the regulations mentioned at the end of this guide.
Reptile Gallery.[13]
III. The long Reptile-gallery contains mounted specimens and skeletons of Reptiles, including Crocodiles, Lizards, Snakes, and Tortoises, as well as restorations or casts of the remains of many groups now entirely extinct. The most noticeable specimen in this gallery is the model of the skeleton of the gigantic extinct North American land Reptile known as Diplodocus carnegii, which measures over eighty feet in length, and was presented by Mr. Andrew Carnegie in 1905. Restored models of the skeletons of the Iguanodon, a British Dinosaur, and of the North American Horned Dinosaur (Triceratops) are also noteworthy.
Fig. 26.—Saddle-backed Tortoise (Testudo abingdoni), of Abingdon Island, Galapagos Group.
The Crocodiles and their extinct relatives occupy the cases on the left of the entrance from the Bird-gallery and also a stand in the middle of the gallery; and among these may be specially noticed the Indian Gharial, of which both the skeleton and skin are exhibited. The two small cases on each side of the west doorway are occupied by extinct forms and the peculiar Tuatera Lizard of New Zealand. At the south end of the east side are arranged the Turtles and Tortoises, including examples of the Giant Tortoises of the Galapagos (fig. 26) and Mascarene Islands, as well as a large species (Testudo calcarata) from North Africa. Opposite the Turtles and Tortoises are the Snakes, among which two large Pythons, coloured to nature, form attractive exhibits. Extinct groups occupy a small case on each side of the east door. Beyond these come the Lizards, which occupy the cases opposite the Crocodiles. The series of Old World Monitor Lizards and American Iguanas is specially noteworthy; and attention may be likewise directed to the curious worm-like Amphisbænas, of which the majority inhabit Tropical America. Casts of remains of the extinct marine Ichthyosaurs and Plesiosaurs are shown in the small cases on the sides of the doorway in the east wall.
Fig. 27.—The Horned Frog (Ceratophrys cornutus) of Brazil.
Amphibians (Salamanders and Frogs).
In the Reptile-gallery is placed a large table-case containing a selection of the more important forms of Amphibians, which are divided into such as possess a tail:—Salamanders and Newts; and those without tails:—Frogs and Toads. During some period of their existence most of these animals live in the water, when they breathe by gills, and are in this respect akin to Fishes. The comparatively enormous size attained by certain tropical species of Frogs and Toads, such as the South American Horned Frog ([fig. 27]), should be noticed. The largest representative of the group is the Giant Salamander of Japan and China.
Fig. 28.—A Sea-Lily, the Larval stage of the Rosy Feather-star. (Antedon rosacea), much magnified. a, arms; b, basals; r, radials; s, stalk.
Starfish Gallery.[14]
IV. A small gallery is devoted to Starfishes and their allies collectively constituting the class Echinoderma. Specimens of these are arranged systematically in table-cases 1–24; and in case 36 are specimens illustrating the anatomy of the skeleton, and models and figures showing the remarkable changes undergone by these animals in the course of their development. In a separate case on the east side of the gallery is a case containing specimens of a large Starfish to illustrate the variability in the number of rays from 4 to 7. In a case on the opposite side is shown Luidia savignei from Mauritius, one of the largest of Starfishes. The Feather-stars (Antedon) are also members of this group; but the most beautiful and remarkable specimens in the gallery are the Sea-Lilies, or Crinoids, collected by the “Challenger” Expedition. One specimen was found attached to an old telegraph-wire taken up in the Caribbean Sea. These deep-sea Crinoids, of which representatives, now extinct, were abundant in earlier periods of the world’s history, are exhibited on tables in the corners of the gallery, by cases 37 and 38. Some of the larval stages of the Feather-stars ([fig. 28]) resemble stalked Crinoids.
The wall-cases contain representatives of the groups collectively known as Worms. Case 1 contains the Tape-Worms or Cestoda, and the Flukes or Trematoda, the life-history of a species of each being illustrated by specimens, figures, and models. In case 2 the Round-Worms are illustrated by models of Trichina, and the anatomical structure of various other kinds is shown by the aid of diagrams. Case 3 contains specimens of free-living terrestrial and marine Worms, Leeches, and Gephyreans. Case 4 is devoted to specimens of Echinoderms preserved in spirit, especially Holothurians, such as Trepangs or Sea-Cucumbers, the Bêche-de-Mer of the French.
Shell Gallery.[15]
V. A large gallery is devoted to the great group of Shell-fish or Mollusca, the exhibition of which is, however, mainly restricted to their shells. In some cases the form of the soft parts is, however, shown either by specimens in spirit or by means of models.
In wall-cases on the west side of the gallery is a series of shells arranged on tablets to show the leading structural types, such as univalve, bivalve, multivalve, etc.; then the nature of the outer coat, or “skin”; and, thirdly, some of the more striking styles of ornamentation and colouring. Following these, a division is devoted to the display of the general form of the shells of bivalves, special attention being directed to the nature of the hinge by which the two valves are joined. Fresh-water Mussels (Unionidæ) are selected as examples of great variability in the form of the shell in closely allied species. Near by is a small series of the shells of boring bivalves, many in the various substances they perforate. Alongside are shown in a similar manner modifications in form and structure presented by Univalve or Gastropod shells; many of the shells having been cut to show their internal structure. Specimens of the horny or shelly plate (operculum) closing the mouth of many Gastropod shells are also exhibited. In one compartment are displayed spirit-preparations of Cephalopod Molluscs, such as Octopus, Cuttle-fish, Squids, Nautilus, Argonaut or Paper-Nautilus, etc. Specimens of the horny beaks possessed by all members of this class are also exhibited; and a Pearly Nautilus ([fig. 31]), with the shell cut in two in order to show the air-chambers and the comparatively small space occupied by the “animal,” will be found of special interest. From the roof are suspended life-sized models of a Giant Squid (Architenthis) and a Giant Octopus. The Cephalopods were extraordinarily numerous in past ages, and many of the fossil forms are exhibited in the Geological Department.
Fig. 29.—The Whelk (Buocinum undatum), a Gastropod Mollusc. a, siphon; b, foot; c, tentacles; d, eyes; e, operculum.
The main shell-collection is contained in four parallel rows of table-cases, the arrangement commencing on the right as the gallery is entered. The first two rows contain the marine forms of Gastropods—a division which includes Snails, Slugs, Whelks ([fig. 29]), and all those Molluscs which crawl upon the under surface of their bodies; the Cowries, Cones, Volutes, Mitras, and Murexes forming some of the most attractive groups. The two rows of cases on the left contain Land-Shells, Bivalves, and Cephalopods. The Cockles, Oysters, Clams, Piddocks, Teredos, Scallops, and Ark-Shells represent some of the principal types of Bivalves, so called on account of their shells being formed of two pieces or valves. A Giant Clam ([fig. 30]), at the S. end of the gallery, weighs 310 lbs., and measures 36 inches in length.
Fig. 30.—Left Valve of the Giant Clam (Tridacna gigantea), a Bivalve Mollusc.
Fig. 31.—The Pearly Nautilus (Nautilus pompilius). a, body; b, funnel; c, eye; d, hood; e, tentacles; f, muscle of attachment to the shell; g, siphuncle.
Sea-Mats, Lamp-shells, and Sea-squirts.
In the same gallery are exhibited examples of three other groups of marine organisms, respectively known as Polyzoa, Brachiopoda, and Tunicata. The Polyzoa live in colonies, and include the so-called Sea-Mat. They are often mistaken for sea-weeds, although in reality they are animals of comparatively high organisation. The Brachiopods have two shells like Bivalve Molluscs, but the valves are dorsal and ventral—that is to say, back and front—instead of right and left. One valve is frequently perforated, hence the name of “Lamp-shells,” from a resemblance to an ancient Roman lamp. Sea-squirts, Tunicates, or Ascidians, are worthy of the attention of the visitor on account of their affinity with the Vertebrate stock, of which they may be regarded as a degenerate type. It is in the larvæ or “Ascidian Tadpoles” that the evidence of Vertebrate relationship is most conspicuous, as shown by certain important characters in the nervous system, skeleton, and respiratory organs.
A series of large shells occupies some of the space in the wall-cases, among which attention may be directed to the thick and often handsomely coloured Helmet-shells (Cassis), which, together with the pink Queen-conch (Strombus), were formerly largely used in the now nearly obsolete art of cameo-cutting. In addition to these, a selection of British shells, and series of the eggs of Molluscs, as well as specimens illustrating the formation of pearls, and other points of special interest connected with Molluscs, are displayed. These specimens include not only the Pearl-oyster, but some of the other shells used in the mother-of-pearl trade.
Whale-Room.
Whale-Room.
Approached by a staircase, leading down from the last (or western-most) of the passages which connect the Bird-gallery with the Coral-gallery, is a separate room in which are placed the specimens of Whales and their relatives. For these, on account of their large size, no other place could be found in the Museum; but the room has, unfortunately, the disadvantage of being too small to display such large animals to full advantage. It is also intersected by columns, which interfere with the complete view of the larger specimens.
As it is almost impracticable to preserve the skins of the larger species of Whales, owing to the oil with which they are saturated, the exhibition of the characters of these animals is carried out by means of their skeletons and artificial models of one side of the body. Complete models, which are much better than actual skins, of many of the smaller kinds, are shown. A general account of the structure and classification of the Cetacea, as Whales are technically termed, with reference to those exhibited in this gallery, will be found in a Special Guide.[16]
Fresh-water Dolphins.
Narwhal.
On the left side of the entrance is a case containing a stuffed specimen, a skeleton, and several skulls of the Susu, or Fresh-water Dolphin (Platanista gangetica) of the rivers of India, and also of the Dolphins of the Rio de la Plata (Pontoporia blainvillei) and of the River Amazon (Inia geoffroyensis). Among the specimens fronting the visitor as he enters the room, one of the most interesting, on account of its remarkable dentition, is the Narwhal, or Sea-Unicorn. It has only two teeth, which lie horizontally in the upper jaw. In the female both remain permanently concealed within the bone of the jaw, so that this sex is practically toothless; but in the male, while the right tooth remains similarly concealed and rudimentary (as shown in the specimen, by removal of part of the bone which covered it), the left is immensely developed, attaining a length equal to that of half the entire animal, and projecting horizontally from the head in the form of a long, straight, tapering and pointed tusk, spirally grooved on the surface. In rare cases, as in the skull exhibited near the skeleton, both teeth are fully developed, and it is noticeable that in such specimens the direction of the spiral is the same in both tusks.
Sperm-Whale.
To the right of the entrance is placed a specimen of the bony framework of one of the most colossal of animals, the Cachalot, or Sperm-Whale (Physeter macrocephalus), [fig. 32], prepared from an old male cast ashore near Thurso, on the north coast of Scotland, in July, 1863, on the estate of Captain D. Macdonald, R.E., by whom it was presented to the Museum. Upon one side of this skeleton has been built the model of the external form of the animal. The Sperm-Whale is the principal source of supply of sperm-oil and spermaceti: the former being obtained by boiling the fat or blubber lying beneath the skin over the whole body. The latter, in a liquid state at the ordinary temperature of the living animal, is contained in cells which fill the immense cavity on the top of the skull. This Whale, which feeds chiefly on Cephalopods (Squids and Cuttle-fishes), but also on Fishes, is distributed throughout the warm and temperate regions of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and sometimes enters British waters.
In order to render this skeleton more instructive, the names have been attached to the principal bones, thus enabling the visitor to trace at a glance the extraordinary modification from the normal mammalian form the huge skull of this species has undergone.
Fig. 32.—An Old Male Sperm-Whale or Cachalot. Skeleton and outline of animal: b, nostril or blowhole; p, rudimentary pelvic bone. Length of specimen 54 feet.
Whalebone Whales.
Most of the largest Cetacea belong to the group called “Whalebone Whales,” in which a series of horny plates termed “whalebone” grow from the palate in place of teeth, and serve to strain the water taken into the mouth from the small marine animals on which these Whales subsist. A representative of this group is the skeleton of the Common Rorqual or Fin-Whale (Balænoptera musculus) in the south-west portion of the room. This Whale, which is sixty-eight feet long, was captured in 1882 in the Moray Firth, Scotland. The flukes of the tail and the back-fin were preserved with the skeleton and are placed above the wall-case behind; the small pelvic bones, and a rudimentary nodule representing the femur or thigh-bone, the only trace of the hind leg of this gigantic animal, are also shown. The external form is modelled in plaster. In front is a skeleton and half-model of the Black or North Atlantic Right-Whale (Balæna glacialis or biscayensis). Below this skeleton is placed a lower jaw of the Greenland Right-Whale (Balæna mysticetus), the species which formerly yielded most of the “whalebone” of commerce, and also a miniature wooden model of the entire animal, on the scale of one inch to the foot.
Remains of extinct Cetaceans—notably the solid bony beaks of the skulls of Beaked Whales (Ziphiidæ) from the Red Crag of the east coast of England—are placed in this gallery. A special table-case, near the Sperm-Whale, shows the curious ear-bones of various Cetaceans, both recent and fossil. These bones are perfectly sufficient for the identification of the kind of Whale from which they were taken. In a case on the opposite side of the gallery is displayed the horny wart, termed by sailors the “bonnet,” found on the nose of the Black Right-Whale.