Fishes of the Western North Atlantic 



97 



Figure 22. Torpedo nobiliana, male, 835 mm long, from ofF Plymouth, Massachusetts (Harv. Mus. Comp. Zool., 

 No. 36040). A Pelvics of same. B Lateral view of tail of same. C Eye and spiracle of same, about I.JX-D Nostrils 

 and mouth of same, about 0.7 X . E Upper teeth from center of jaw of same, about 4.9 x . F Upper teeth near 

 right-hand cornerof mouth of same, about 5 X. G Side viewof tail of female, about 1,065 mm long, from Province- 

 town, Mass. (Harv. Mus. Comp. Zool., No. 653). 



Atlantic except for the local representatives of the genera Benthobatis^ Narcine, and 

 Diplobatis, from which it is easily distinguishable by the wide distensibility of its mouth 

 (gape not limited at corners by labial cartilages) and by the rather firm attachment to 

 the upper and lower jaw cartilages of the integument that bears the tooth bands. 



Further distinctions, perhaps more convenient as field marks, that set it apart 

 from Benthobath are its well developed and functional eyes, relatively much shorter 

 snout, and wider disc. Obvious features that differentiate it from Narcine brasiliensis 

 are a disc that is considerably wider than long, the anterior margin of which is nearly 

 straight or even slightly emarginate rather than convexly rounded, and a first dorsal 

 fin that considerably overlaps the bases of the pelvics. The fact that at least the tips of 



