DISCUSSION OF SPECIES AND THEIR DlSTKIlil.TION. 481 



Begaleciis rrmipci, BnrNNiciT, loc. cil., 17.SS, 111, |il. M, tigs. 4-5. 



GijmnrlrHS remiprs, Schneideh, Io<\ i-it., 4SL'. pi. SS. 



Gijmnitriis (iriUii, LiNDROPil, K. Vet. .Vk. Hand., 17MS, 2111, pi. vrii. — .'>iiixkii>i;k, np. fil., 482. 



Heijdleciis Crillii, (JC'Ntiier, iip.cii., 311. 



f'(7)c)^«r//nrfi«.'*, Walhau.m, Artodi, III, ()17. 



(ill much- IIS ijUidius, CuviEK and Valencie.nne.s, Hist. Nat. Puiss., x, .S2."), pi. cc.xcviii. 



lieijiilixii-'i yindiiis, GuNTiiEU, Cat. Fi.sb. lirit. Mils., in, .SOX.— (lAXE.STHixr, Fauna Italica. Pcsci, liC— Mcii:eai: 



Inc. cit., 55.5. — GiiJEioLi, Elenco, 32. 

 aymiictrus Hawkenii, Block, Ichth., xii. 171I2. s.-<. 125. — IjAckt'Ede, Hist. Nat. I'oiss., iii. 380. — Siiaw, Zixd., 



IV, l!i7. 

 (ijfmiu'tnis Hiiirkiiisii, Schneioer, Blocli Syst. Idith.. ISdl, i:)7. 

 (ill HUH' If us Jsraiiii, Siiaw, Zool., iv, 1!I7. 

 (iiimiielrtis Iiiiujiradiatiis, Ris.so, Hist. Nat., Ill, lS2(i, 2!Hi. 

 Gjimnelnis ttdnm, Ci'ViER and Valexcienne.s, op. cil., x, :!i>l. [il. ccxcix. 

 Iteijalei'us tdiiiii, MoRBAU, Hist. Nat. Poi.ss. France, ,557. — (iniLioLl, tiir. cil. 

 Jietialccii.^ Daiiksii, CuviER and Valenciennes, up. rit., x, 365. — Dav, Fishes (ircat Uritain and Ireland, i, 



22(1, pi. I.xiv. 

 CiijmiK'lrus lldiiksii, Trlstram, Pror. Zuiil. Snr., ISKtj, 1 17. 

 Gymnetnts capiiisis, Cuvier and A'ai.enciennes, up. cit., x, 37t). — (iiNriiEU, lot: cil. — Layard, Pi-oe. Zool. 



Soc, 1868, 319 (figure). 



Body very elongate, its lieigbfc from (int'-twelfth to one twenty- fourtli of it.s lens'tli, 

 Lengtli of the head contained iioin 1(> to 20 times in the h'ii;;th of the body. Snout 

 .short, truncated; cleft of mouth vertical, the upper jaw very ])rotriK"tile. Jtiws minute 

 or absent. Diameter of eye 4 to (5 times in length of hctid. Tlie anterior rays, 8 to l^ 

 in number, form an elevated crest, sometimes in two jiaits, the [losterior rays of this crest 

 with membranous tips. Bach veiitrtil ray with a lobate membranous tip. Slvin with 

 numerous bony tubercles. Lateral line phiced low. 



Eadiiil formula: I). 275-400; T. 41-14; V. I. 



Color, silver gray, witli a few sjiots or streaks of daiker line, most numerous tinteriorly. 



It is not certain that there is more tlitin <me species of Itcf/nleciis, although, as the .syn- 

 onymy which precedes clearly shows, vtirious names lia\e been suggested iu coiincctioii 

 with the comparatively few individuals which, during the past century and a half, liave 

 been cai>tuted in tlie North Atlantic. There appears to be considerable ])ossibility of indi- 

 vidual vtiriation in proportions of height to length, atid in the number of rays in the dorsal 

 hii, but it is ii, fact well known to iclilhyologists tiitit consttuicy is not to be expected in 

 forms in -which the number of vertebra-, :ind tin r;i\s has been extended far beyond the nor- 

 mal a\ ciage. 



It should also be said that most of the individuals studied have licen in very imperfect 

 condition, and also that in many instances the observations litive been made by untrained 

 observers, so that it seems doubtful whether there is really more tlitiu one species to be 

 assigned to the Atlantic tauna. At till events, Giiuther, Oollett, Liitkeu, and Day agree in 

 the idea that it is impossible to discriminate between the forms already described, and we 

 follow their lead in considering them all, for the present, as a single species. It is not 

 impossible, of course, that, should better material lie obtained, it may be desirable to sepa- 

 rate the group into more subsiiccies, but until this shall l)e done discrimination leads to 

 confusion rather than to detinite knowledge. 



The fishes belonging to the genus Begnlems are very remiirkable, not only on account 

 of their pecidiar appearance and structure, but because of their enormous size. They 

 Imve been known to attain the length of 20 feet, tind it is more than probable that they 

 grow very much longer, and that mtiny of the creatures popularly ideiititied with the "sea 

 seriient" are only large individuals of this type. Indeed, it seems quite safe to tissign to 

 this group all the so-called "seti serpents" which have been described as swimming rapidly 

 near the sitrface, with a horse-like head raised above the water, suriaountcd byam:ine-like 

 crest of red or brown. 



The individual which came ashore at ITungTy Bay in I'.ermudti in 1800, and which was 

 about 17 feet long, was described by the people who saw it before its capture :is being 

 very mnch Itirger, and as having a head of an immense horse with a flaming red mane. Giiu- 

 11)808— No. 2 34 



