Eskimo SCRIMSHAW Whale BALEEN Polar Bear

Fantastic Rare Eskimo SCRIMSHAW WHALE BALEEN, amazingly depicting a polar bear standing at the cliffs edge of a glacier and another scene of a bear standing by his freshly hunted walrus kill with seagulls eager to get a morsel. It is signed Edward Rexford Katrrk AL. 79747? and would make a spectacular addition to any collection. Background Information: Baleen whales are the largest animals on earth, yet they feed on some of the smallest animals in the ocean. There are 12 baleen whale species divided into 4 families: right, pygmy right, gray and rorqual whales. What are right whales and pygmy right whales like? Right whales were called the "right" whales to catch by early hunters because they are large, swim slowly, have long baleen plates, contain lots of oil, and float when killed. Right whales do not have dorsal fins or throat grooves. The taxonomy of this family is rather confusing, but currently there are three species of right whales: the Northern right whale, Southern right whale, and bowhead whale. The pygmy right is in a separate family although it shares similar characteristics to right whales. What are gray whales like? Gray whales have their own taxonomic family, genus, and species. They are the most coastal of the baleen whales and are often found within a few miles of shore. Each year gray whales migrate between their summer feeding grounds in the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas to their winter breeding grounds off Baja California, Mexico. This is one of the longest migrations by a mammal species. Gray whales are gray in color and their skin is encrusted with barnacles and a unique species of small crustaceans known as "whale lice." They have 2-3 short throat grooves and instead of a dorsal fin they have a low dorsal hump followed by 6-12 "knuckles" or bumps. Whalers used to call gray whales "devil fish" because of their aggressive response to being hunted. What are rorqual whales like? Rorqual whales are relatively streamlined in appearance and have pointed heads and small pointed fins. They can be distinguished from other whales by many (25-90) deep groves along their throats that expand when they feed. There are 8 species of rorqual whales: the humpback whale, fin whale, Bryde's whale, blue whale, northern minke, antarctic minke, Eden's ("small-type") whale.

SIZE: 40" length.
CONDITION: Very good.