224- Animals* 



for every covering of the scales ; the 

 Skate, and Ray, like other fish \vhich 

 have no scales, have their ages discover- 

 ed, by seperating the joints of the back 

 bone, and then examining the number of 

 rings which the surface exhibited where 

 it vvas joined, allowing one year for each 

 ring. Little can be said in favour of the 

 certainty of either of these methods ; 

 they however, though not infallible cri- 

 terions, enable us to make a near approx- 

 imation to the truth. 



The greatest singularity in fishes, is 

 their amazing fecundity. Some are vi- 

 viparous, and others oviparous ; the lat- 

 ter produce their young, or rather their 

 eggs, in far greater abundance than the 

 former ; but at the same time they are 

 more subject to become the prey of oth- 

 er fish, and even of their own species, 

 not excepting the parent itself which ex- 

 cluded them, while they continue in 

 their egg state ; consequently but very 

 few of these eggs produce live animals, 

 though produced in such considerable 

 numbers. A single Cod will produce 

 above nine million of eggs in one sea- 

 son ; and many other fish have as pro- 

 portionable an increase* 



