442 KniNOB.vTiDit:. 



tins without spine, both at a great distance behind the ventral fins. 

 Caudal fin without lower lobe. 

 Tropical and subtropical seas. 



The passage from lihinohatas proper (species with a narrow auie- 

 rior nasal valve) to Sijrrhina ^^species with a broad anterior nasal 

 valve) is so gradual that these groups cannot bo maintained as 

 subgenera. Some of the species which ought to have been placed in 

 Sijrrhina have been referred to Rhinobatus by Miiller and Henle. 



1. Rhinobatus thouini. 



Raie thouin, Lacq). i. p. 134, pi. 1. figs. 3-5; Shaw, Zool. v. 2. 



p. 318, pi. 147. fig. 2. 

 Rhinobatus thouini, Mull. 8f Henle, p. 120; Diwieril, Elasmobr. 

 p. 500, pi. 10. fig. 2 (snout). 



ligonifer, Cant. Mai. Fiah. p. 415, pi. 14 ; Bleek. Verh. Bat. 



Gen. xxiv. Plar/. p. 59. 

 Anterior nasal valve not dilated laterally. Nostril very long, its 

 length being more than the space between the inner angles of the 

 nostrils. Snout terminating in a long narrow cartilaginous appen- 

 dage. Mouth straight. Skin coarsely granular ; a series of com- 

 pressed spines along the median line of the back ; similar spines on 

 the orbital margin and shoulder. Rostral ridges confluent, narrow. 



East-Indian archipelago. 

 (t. Half- grown. Pinang. From Dr. Cantor's Collection. 



b. Half-grown : skin, Pinang. From Dr. Cantor's Collection. 



c. Half-grown. East-Indian archipelago. From Dr. Bleeker's Col- 



lection. 



2. Rhinobatus halavi. 

 Raja halavi, Forsk. Descr. .in. p. 19. 



Rhinobatus halavi, liiipp. Atl. Fisch. p. 65, tab. 14. fig. 2 ; Miill. &■ 

 Henle, p. 120; GuichcH. Explor. Alger. Poiss. p. 129; Dumenl, 

 Elasmobr. p. 496. 



Anterior nasal valve not dilated laterally. Snout rather pro- 

 duced, the distance between the outer angles of the nostrils being 

 contained about once and three -fifths in that between the mouth 

 and the end of the snout. Mouth straight. Back covered with 

 distinct rough tubercles, and with a distinct series of large tuber- 

 cles along the median line. Some distinct spinous tubercles in front 

 of the eye and on the shoulder. The two rostral ridges separated 

 at the base by a broad triangular groqve, but confluent along the 

 middle third of their length. 



From the Mediterranean to the sea of China. 



a. Half-grown. River Bonny (West Africa). Purchased of Mr. J. 



AVood. 



b. Adult female : stuff"cd. Gambia. Purchased. 



c. Adult male : stuff"ed. Red Sea. Purchased of Dr. Riippell. 



d. Adult female : stuffed. China. 



f. Adult female : stuff'cd. From the Collection of the Zoological Society. 

 f. Half-grown male. From the Haslar Collection. 



