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Show 458 DR. 3. v. HAAST O N O U L O D O N . [May 16, As I was fortunate enough to obtain two of these skeletons complete, I shall be able to send one of them to my friend Prof. W . H. Flower as a type specimen, and for description ; and I therefore leave the osteological details to him. Although the bones are not yet quite macerated, I may state that the female, exceeding by nearly 4 feet the largest male obtained, is a full-grown animal, whilst the three males are all immature specimens. I measured the length of its lower jaw, and find that it is 2 feet 850 inches long, consequently nearly 1 inch longer than the lower jaw of the dried skull which I assigned to a full-grown female, and to which it bears a close resemblance. The mandibular tooth could scarcely be felt when passing the finger over the gums of this specimen ; and its existence could scarcely have been ascertained in that way had I not known its exact position. On the other hand, in all the three male skulls the point of the mandibular tooth protruded already, even in the smallest, through the gums, and the more laterally extended size of that portion of the lower jaw was at once discernible. I measured also the lower jaw of the male sktdl (B), and found it to be 1 foot 11*85 inches long; consequently its size is intermediate between the two Chatham- Island skulls no. ii., of which the lower jaw measures 2 feet 6*03 inches, and of the immature no. iii., which is only 1 foot 7*75 inches long. All the four skulls possess from seventeen to nineteen teeth on both sides of the roof of the mouth ; so that this character can now be claimed as being constant and specific. As to the external features of this species, its form may be described as being rather elegant; the head is tapering ; and the beaklike rostrum runs out to a point, so that it was not inappropriately compared by one of the workmen to the beak of a bird. The colour of the back is black, getting a little lighter near the tail, where it assumes a dark slate tint; the lower side is reddish brown, near the tail assuming on both sides a more blackish hue. The blowhole is situated in the centre; it is about 6 inches in diameter, and the corners are directed forward. The animal possesses a large falcate dorsal fin, situated rather backwards; and the pectoral fins are small and somewhat pointed. The following measurements were taken from the immature male (C):-Total length 13 feet 8 inches; girth round body 18 inches behind pectoral fins, where the animal has its largest size, 9 feet; from point of rostrum to anterior border of pectoral fin, 3 feet 5 inches ; from posterior end of dorsal fin to centre of tail-lobes, 4 feet 3 inches. |