Narwhal, or Sea Unicorn (Monodon monoceros), allied to the dolphins and porpoises. The male has one—almost invariably the left—of the teeth or tusks in the upper jaw extraordinarily developed into a spirally furrowed horn of pure ivory from six to ten feet long. This is the longest tooth found in the Mammalia. The adult animal is from ten to sixteen feet long. It has a grey back, mottled with black, the under parts being much lighter, but also spotted. It has a blunt, short head, no dorsal fin and very small flippers, but is very active and a rapid swimmer. It is peculiar to the Arctic Ocean, though it occasionally strays as far south as the British seas. The oil is valuable and the flesh edible. The ivory is very fine, and in the castle of Rosenborg at Copenhagen is a throne of the kings of Denmark made of this substance.
Porpoise (Phocæna communis).—The porpoise, five, six, or seven feet in length, is common in the North Atlantic. Often off the British coasts a shoal of porpoises may be seen frolicking quite near to the shore. Passengers on board ocean-going liners are always interested in watching the sportive “black pigs,” as sailors call them, race along the side of the ship. The animals are captured chiefly for their oil, and the skin can be converted into useful leather.
Rorqual (Balænoptera musculus).—The common Rorqual is a typical species of the “finners,” as sailors term them; the generic name means “Finned Whale,” in reference to the small back fin that lies near the region of the tail. It attains an enormous size; one caught in the North Sea was ninety-five feet in length, twenty-two feet in width, and weighed over two hundred and fifty tons. Rorquals are the most widely distributed of all the larger Cetaceans; they are found nearly everywhere outside the Antarctic regions.
Whale Fisheries.—With the older method of whale-fishing the chief products were oil and whalebone. Recently the industry has been revolutionized, principally by Norwegians, and practically every part of the animal is used. For the new method a suitable island is selected, a cutting-up station constructed, and all whales killed are towed to the station and there drawn upon land to be dealt with. The modern whaling-vessel is a small and powerful steamer with a heavy harpoon gun mounted in the bows. The harpoon is a special kind of barbed spear. No boats are used, the steamer following the whales when sighted. By dealing with the carcase on shore all parts are now used, including the bone, blubber (or fat), the soft parts after the oil has been expressed being prepared as fertilizers. The flesh is asserted to be palatable and may ultimately be sold for food.
WHITE AMERICAN EGRETS IN A SOUTH FLORIDA CYPRESS FOREST
These are perhaps the most beautiful of the heron family and are much persecuted by the plumage hunters for the sake of the spray-like plumes which grow on their backs in the breeding season.
THE BIRDS
The birds have a hard, bony skeleton, and red, warm blood; they breathe by means of lungs, and lay eggs with hard shells. Their bodies are covered with feathers, their fore limbs are changed into wings.