Chapters 87-90 Summary

The Pequod nears the sperm whale hunting grounds located close to Japan. So far, they have not docked at any port, nor have they touched land. The crew of the Pequod finds themselves in the midst of a large group of sperm whales. Queequeg and Ishmael's boat captures a baby whale with its umbilical cord still attached. In the course of the chase, the Pequod's crew is pursued by Malay pirates, whom they escape. During the course of the action, the crew of the Pequod marks several whales as theirs, but only comes away with one captured beast.

Ishmael next describes the grouping habits of whales. They can be seen either in large groups, as the Pequod had just encountered, or smaller groups, known as schools. While Ishmael sees these groups of female whales with their one male leader as a...