Sperm whale

“ It is in the shape of the head that the sperm whale differs, in the most remarkable degree, from the right whale—the shape of whose head more resembles that of a porpoise—and in it the spout-hole is situated much farther back, rendering it seldom or never necessary for the nose to be elevated above the surface of the water. The eyes, in both the sperm and right whale, are exceedingly small in comparison with their bulk; still, 55 they are tolerably quick-sighted. We are not aware that the sperm whale possesses, in any respect, any superiority. ”

“ In another respect, the sperm is very different from the Greenland whale. It seems to know the power of its jaws, and will sometimes turn on its pursuers and attack them, though generally a timid animal, and disposed to seek safety by flight. The general opinion is, that sperm whales often fight with each other, as we have caught them with their lower jaws twisted in a variety of directions, and otherwise injured. The sperm whale’s eyes are very small, with movable eyelids, and are placed directly above the angle of the mouth, or a third part of its whole length distant from the snout. ”

“ The sperm-whale is one of the most widely distributed of animals, being met with, usually in herds or “schools,” in almost all tropical and subtropical seas, and occasionally visiting the northern seas, a number having been killed around the Shetlands a few years ago. The food of sperm-whales consists mainly of squid and cuttlefish, but also comprises fish of considerable size. ”

“ I shall not attempt to chronicle here the numerous authentic instances of ships or boats which have been destroyed and sunk by sperm whales, for they are the common property of every book on deep-sea whaling. They leave no doubt that these animals often turn the tables on their hunters and attack with savage ferocity and dire results.
Apparently the sperm is the only whale which will deliberately turn upon its pursuers when not in its death flurry. ”

“ The most remarkable feature about the sperm whale is the bluntness of its clumsy head, which looks somewhat like a big log with the end sawn square off, and this head is about one-third of its entire body. ”

“ The sperm whale is probably the only marine animal which is more than a match for a herd of killers. The enormous lower jaw of a sperm whale presents an array of teeth even more formidable than those of the orca, and I greatly doubt if the killer could succeed in terrifying this whale; it is significant that the flukes and flippers of sperms are practically always free from injuries. ”

“ And as if the now tested reality of his might had in former legendary times thrown its shadow before it; we find some book naturalists—Olassen and Povelson—declaring the Sperm Whale not only to be a consternation to every other creature in the sea, but also to be so incredibly ferocious as continually to be athirst for human blood. ”

“ Better armed than a baleen whale, whose upper jaw is adorned solely with whalebone, the sperm whale is equipped with twenty–five huge teeth that are twenty centimeters high, have cylindrical, conical summits, and weigh two pounds each. In the top part of this enormous head, inside big cavities separated by cartilage, you'll find 300 to 400 kilograms of that valuable oil called "spermaceti." The sperm whale is an awkward animal, more tadpole than fish, as Professor Frédol has noted. ”

“ A DEEP-SEA SPERM WHALE HUNT Every time I see a sperm whale shot with a bomb harpoon from the bows of a steamship, I have more respect for the old-time hunters who kill the huge brutes with a hand harpoon and lance. The vitality of a sperm is enormous, and even when several bombs have exploded in its body the animal will often fight for hours before it spouts blood and dies. ”

“ It is a wonder that the species does not get scarce in many localities, so great is the chase after them. During the last forty years the Americans alone have taken at the rate of 10,000 barrels of sperm oil per annum, or upwards of four million barrels since 1835. The sperm whale, though of such enormous bulk and courage, yet has enemies besides man. The thrasher and the killer whale both attack it, and sailors assert that the sword-fish and thrasher combine against it, the latter stabbing from below, whilst the former leaps on it with stunning blows. ”

“ This is accounted for by the play of the body, which naturally lies head to wind; and the wash of the flukes, which, acting somewhat like the "sculling" of an oar at the stern of a boat, propel the carcass in the direction it is pointing, Consequently we had a cruel amount of towing to do before we got the three cows alongside. Many a time we blessed ourselves that they were no bigger, for of all the clumsy things to tow with boats, a sperm whale is about the worst. ”

“ The Sperm Whale is in some cases sufficiently powerful, knowing, and judiciously malicious, as with direct aforethought to stave in, utterly destroy, and sink a large ship; and what is more, the Sperm Whale has done it. ”

“ He struck a school of sperm-whales, killed one, and brought blubber home. It was not a new discovery, for the sperm-whale or cachalot, had been known for years, but the great numbers of right whales and the ease with which they were taken, had made pursuit of this nobler game uncommon. But now the fact, growing yearly more apparent, that right whales were being driven to more inaccessible haunts, made whalers turn readily to this new prey. Moreover, the sperm-whale had in him qualities of value that made him a richer prize than his Greenland cousin. ”

“ In life, the visible surface of the Sperm Whale is not the least among the many marvels he presents. Almost invariably it is all over obliquely crossed and re-crossed with numberless straight marks in thick array, something like those in the finest Italian line engravings. But these marks do not seem to be impressed upon the isinglass substance above mentioned, but seem to be seen through it, as if they were engraved upon the body itself. Nor is this all. ”

“ I only know that, when a sperm whale is killed, they make oil out of the fat part as they do of ours; but the Sperms have a sort of cistern in their heads, full of stuff like cream, and rose-colored. They cut a hole in the skull, and dip it out; and sometimes get sixteen or twenty barrels. This is made into what you call spermaceti candles. We don't have any such nonsense about us ”

“ When, however, a company of young male Whales are found, and one is attacked, little love or interest in each other’s welfare is manifested, every one rushing off helter-skelter in all directions, to the whaler’s chagrin. The old “bulls,” on the other hand, are more sedate and less easily frightened, and unless roused by injury to retaliate on their pursuers are more readily harpooned. The Sperm Whale is easily known from all others, even at a great distance, from the regularity of its blowing and the manner in which it throws up a volume of vapour obliquely forwards. ”

“ The sperm-whale fishery, of which the products are spermaceti, sperm-oil, ambergris (mostly found floating in masses in the sea) and teeth, appears to have been initiated by the Americans in 1690, who for a considerable period found sufficient occupation in the neighbourhood of their own coasts. The British are, however, stated to have opened up the great whaling-grounds of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, although they did not embark on sperm-whaling till 1775. ”

“ In the tops of their heads they have great holes filled with sperm oil. Their throats are wide enough to swallow a man. They are called sperm whales, but the whales with whalebone strips in their mouths are called true whales.
When the baby stopped drinking milk the mother set out with him to leave the bay, and find the father whale in the deep sea without. The young whale could swim almost as fast as the old one now. He could stay under water without breathing quite as long as she could. The warm blanket of blubber under his skin had grown thicker. It kept him warm and helped him to float. ”

“ The Sperm Whale is chiefly a tropical animal. Examples that have been cast up on our shores are strayed individuals. It often goes about in herds, which seem to be composed of females. Its food is chiefly cuttle-fishes, and it is said to have a predilection for those colossal cuttle-fishes whose existence has until recently been doubted. ”

“ How did a whale act, what were the first steps taken, what chance was there of being saved if your boat got smashed, and so on unto infinity. At last, getting very tired of this "Portugee Parliament" of all talkers and no listeners, I went aft to get a drink of water before turning in. The harpooners and other petty officers were grouped in the waist, earnestly discussing the pros and cons of attack upon whales. As I passed I heard the mate's harpooner say, "Feels like whale about. I bet a plug (of tobacco) we raise sperm whale to-morrow." ”

“ The value to mankind of the sperm whale lies in the liquid fat and the valuable substance, spermaceti, that fill a vast cavity in the top of its skull, a single whale yielding several barrels of it, from which the commercial "spermaceti" and a fine oil are extracted. ”

“ But they have never been known to tackle the great Sperm Whale, except when the great creature has been wounded by his human enemies. And to witness one of these mighty struggles is worth travelling many a thousand miles to see; it is terrible, awe-inspiring, and wonderful. ”

“ Females are much smaller, rarely exceeding 38 feet (11.6 m) .
A sperm whale is among the easiest of whales to identify at sea even when comparatively little of the animal is visible. It has a huge head, which comprises from a fourth to a third of the animal's total length. (The proportion is considerably higher for males than for females.) The blunted "squarish" snout, which may project up to 5 feet (1.5 m) beyond the tip of the lower jaw, houses a large reservoir containing a high-quality oil called spermaceti. ”

“ The equally famous sperm whales have always been very rare, as they prefer southern waters. But the 'finners,' which are still fairly common, include the 'sulphurs,' among which there have been {164} specimens far exceeding any authentic sperms or 'rights.' Even the humpbacks and common finbacks, both well known in Canadian waters, occasionally surpass the average size of sperms and 'rights.' But the sulphur is probably the only kind of whale which sometimes grows to a hundred feet and more. ”

“ I tell you, the sperm whale will stand no nonsense. ”

“ The Sperm Whale has a great, blunt head, a huge mouth, and a throat large enough to swallow a man. His clumsy-looking head contains oil, so does the deep layer of blubber with which his body is covered. ”