Translation 2783

..... 261
After a long sta,r unde':• water in i:-.(tales co:ir to : sur-Lace V(2
W
at a. low a.n.C;le, Ize hea,d, t^ie blow--hole, a.L,pears first, and
thon t..:re is a s;.out u;) to 5 or 6 metres iii height. After that
the wha.le dives aga in a. few tir:ies, but then the spouts are not so
high, and at the same time thed^^^^;^^^^^ivisible. The flukes are
not usually displayed before a dive.
The length oI stay under water by fin whales varies from 2-3
minutes up to 10-15 minutes, and on rare_occasions even more.
The rate of movement while the whales are feeding on the
fattening-grounds is not great, two or three knots. During migration
the rate increases and reaches five to ten knots. Migrating fin
whales are capable of deiTeloping great bursts of speed..
When alarmed
or wounded they may develop a speed of 15 knots or more. Modern
whalers are not always able to pursue and overtake such whales.
Fin whales atta.in physical maturity, on an average, at a
length of 18.9 metres for males and 20.1 metres for females. '1',ieir
maximum longevity is estimated at 50 years.
Tnfesta.tions of Copepoda (I='enella, sometimes numbering hundreds)
have been observed on t._ese whales; in more northerly regions
diatom algae settle on their skin.
Itelminthic parasites are usually found in the intestines,
liver, and kidneys. Fin whales' diseases have not been well studied.
Cases of attack by killer whales are rare, tr^e victims usually
being young calves or juveniles.
Since 1910 the fin wtiale has been the leading species among
baleen whales hunted in the northern _part-of the 'Pacific Ocean.
Japanese whalers have taken mostly members of the Asiatic herd, and
before 1939 they took from 2c.1 to 1,040 of the animals from coastal
stations each season.
With the inauguration of,Japanese pelagic
flotillas the intensity of whaling increased, and since 1954 from
2,503 to 2,602 were taken per season; in 1964 and 1965 the takes of
fin whales were 3,991 and 3,166 respectively, whereas in 1969 the
total take in all the northern ,part of the Pacific Ocean was only
1,276. Data on the take are presented in Appendixes 7 and 11.
As in the North Atlantic, up to five or six tons of oil are
obtained from a single fin rrhale. remales measuring 19.0, 19.8,
19.9, 20.8, and 21.65 metres weighed 51.5, 4.8.1, 48.6s 53.8, and
59.0 tons r.espectively, and males measuring 17.9, 18.5, and 18.85
metres weighed 31.3, 36.9, and 34.0 tons respectively.