268 ZOOLOGY. 



pupil black ; the body is long and very compressed ; 

 it widens abruptly immediately behind the head, and 

 remains nearly the same size until it approaches the 

 tail, when it tapers to a fine point. It is smooth, 

 consists of a firm gelatinous structure, enveloped in 

 a tough tunic, is colourless,* and in all parts so per- 

 fectly transparent, that when laid on the page of a book 

 it does not obscure the smallest letter. No traces of 

 viscera interrupt its uniform transparency. A white 

 thread-like line passes within the entire length of the 

 body, near its upper third, and is intersected by similar 

 slender lines, arranged obliquely and at equal dis- 

 tances. They resemble the rudiments of a skeleton; 

 but are, more probably, portions of a nervous system. 

 There are no pectoral, ventral, nor caudal fins ; the 

 dorsal is merely a thin narrow membrane, occupying 

 the entire length of the back; and the anal, which 

 reaches nearly to the tail, is equally insignificant. 



Examples of this fish, when first taken from the 

 water, did not exhibit the slightest movement, or other 

 sign of life, and their body retained the curve which I 

 have given to it in the above sketch ; but when they 

 were put into a vessel of sea-water, immediately they 

 were taken from the net, they swam actively, with a 

 twirling or eel-like motion. All the specimens we ob- 

 tained were taken near the surface of the sea. They 

 varied much in size. The average length of the species 

 appeared to be from seven to ten inches ; though one 

 individual we captured, measured one foot three inches 

 in length, and an inch and a half across the broadest 

 part of the body ; its head was, as usual, small, and 

 bore no proportion to the increased size of the body. 



* In some specimens, I noticed that the body had a delicate pink 

 hue, with a row of black dots on the margin of the dorsal fin. 



