The rostrums of bowhead
whales detached from the rest of the skulls. The
long pieces should be attached to the front of the
skull on the opposite side to the two knobbly pieces
seen sticking up on the two partial skulls in this
picture. The rostrums with their attached baleen
(whalebone) were probably cut off to assist with
processing.
The lush growth of mosses around the bones is the
result of nutrient enrichment from the bones, still
evident after more than 350 years, even with the
slow growth of arctic plants this must represent the
continual recycling many times over of minerals in a
small area.
76° 56.7' N, 15°
49.9' E
Picture
copyright Paul Ward |
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