CHONDROPTERYGII. 653 



The Cephalopterus Banksianus, Raja Banksiana, Lacepede, 

 is known by a drawing of the species sent to Sir Joseph 

 Banks. The eyes of this species are on the upper surface of the 

 head, and not on the sides as in the other; behind them 

 are three long patches, three others like them near the origin 

 of the tail, and two at the base of each pectoral fin, and there 

 is a long filament at the top of each of the horn-like appen- 

 dices of the head. 



The dimensions of this species do not appear, but it is said 

 that seven pair of oxen were required to draw it ashore. 



The Ceph. manatia, Raja manatia, Lac. is another gigantic 

 species. It has no dorsal fin, but there is a hump on the 

 back, the eyes are lateral, there is an air valve behind each 

 eye. The tail terminates in a forked fin. The back is blackish, 

 and the under parts white. 



This species inhabits the intertropical seas of America : a 

 specimen or figure of it, which was sent to Lacepede, was, 

 or represented to be, nearly twenty feet in length. 



It seems that it is to this species we may refer what Barrere 

 and other travellers have said of the enormous rays of the 

 American and equinoctial seas, which spring above the 

 surface of the water and splash it to an immense distance on 

 falling into it' Levaillant, in his Second Voyage to Africa, 

 speaks of having seen one the smallest of three which swam 

 round about the vessel, about twenty-five feet long, and more 

 than thirty wide, and Sonnini speaks of one which appeared 

 to him larger and wider than the ship in which he was 

 sailing. 



The sting, as it is commonly called, with which the tail of 

 these formidable fish is armed, inflicts a very dangerous 

 wound, though by no means so deadly as is represented by 

 the ancient naturalists with regard to the species found in 

 the Mediterranean, especially the Rata aqutla of Linnaeus. 

 This sting or barb, as we have said above, is decidu- 



