The feeding apparatus of the Greenland Whale; drawings after David Gray, 1877.

These drawings, based on sketches in the December 1 1877 edition of the journal Land and Water are typical of David Gray's keen eye for zoological detail. The highly accurate drawings show the way in which the baleen plates are used by the bowhead whale to filter out its food from the sea.

 

Drawing of the open mouth of a bowhead whale

Drawing of the closed mouth of a bowhead whale NOAA
Feeding apparatus of the bowhead whale; after David Gray
Martyn Gorman   ·   University of Aberdeen   ·   Department of Zoology ·   © 2002