stingrays' wings. 119 



From an edible point of view the flesh of this species is, 

 like that of the Yellow Leather] acket, of considerable value. 



This is the species mentioned by Ogilby under the name 

 of Yellow-linned Leatherjacket. 



Many other species of Leather] ackets occur in our waters, 

 and a number of them may be regarded as of more or less 

 importance as edible fishes. 



SHARKS AND RAYS. 



It is not my intention to deal exhaustively with these 

 fishes, and, generally speaking, they are popularly regarded 

 as being altogether " outside the pale " from an edible stand- 

 point. But this is not altogether the case, as there is, even 

 at the present time, a slight, and perhaps growing, demand 

 for the pectoral flaps or " wings " of the Common Stingray 

 {Trygoiwptera lestacea), while for many years there has been 

 a small export of dried shark's fins, per medium of the Chinese 

 merchants. In addition to these, there are three fishes which 

 may, and I think should, come into prominence in the near 

 future, when deep-sea fishing is carried out in a practical 

 manner. Those which I refer to are three species of true 

 skate : the Common Skate {Raja ausiralis), the Great Skate 

 [Raja scabra), and another known as Raja nitida. The first 

 is very common along our coast, where it attains a length of 

 about 20 inches. It was described by Sir William Macleay 

 in 1884, and during the short trawling cruise of the " Thetis " 

 in 1898, it was found to be exceedingly abundant at depths 

 ranging from 10 to 84 fathoms. The second is a much larger 

 species, often weighing over 60 pounds. In regard to Raja 

 nitida, the third species mentioned, little is known. It was 

 dredged by the " Challenger " Expedition off Twofold Bay at 

 a depth of 120 fathoms. 



