134 



SKETCH or THE HISTORY OF MAMiMALIA, 



either to bask in the sun or seek for terrestrial vege- 

 tables. (Fig. 89.) The males and females are mutually 

 attached to each other, and the latter are tenderly de- 

 voted to their young, which soon after birth they carry 

 under their flippers, where the teats are seated. This 

 species measures from six to seven feet in length ; the 

 head is small, the muzzle thick and fleshy, presenting at 

 its extremity a semicircular disc, at the upper part of 

 which are the nostrils, semicircular orifices, directed for- 

 wards. The eyes are small ; the aperture of the audi- 

 tory canal almost imperceptible. From the shoulders 

 the body gradually diminishes, and terminates in a flat, 

 horizontal, oval paddle. 



89.— Manatee. 



A distinct species (Manatus Senegal ensis, Desm.) is 

 found in the embouchure of the Senegal and other rivers 

 of Western Africa ; its manners resemble those of the 

 preceding, but we have no very precise details. 



According to Dr. Harlan, a distinct species of mana- 

 tee, which he terms Manatus latirostris, inhabits the 

 shores of some parts of North America. 



