THE LONG FILE FISH. 10? 



Descriptions. 



nine or ten young ones are said to have been 

 found in the belly of the female. She excludes 

 them one at a time, and the fishermen declare 

 that she is always pregnant. According to Pen- 

 nant, the females are much larger than the 

 males. 



THE UNICORN. 



THE head of the unicorn consists but of one 

 ray ; and we are told by Catesby, that the guts of 

 this fish are full of small shells, and coraline sub- 

 stances, which, by the strength and hardness of 

 its jaws, it is enabled to grind very small. They 

 mostly frequent those seas among the Bahama 

 Islands, where the corals are in greatest plenty. 

 These fish are not eaten, being accounted poi- 

 sonous. 



THE LONG FILE FISH. 



THE body of the long file fish is not very 

 deep; the skin is divided by smooth furrows 

 with small rough scale-like spaces: each of these 

 on the sides have a small spine pointing towards 

 the tail; the first dorsal fin has three spines, the 

 first of which is very large and rough in front, 

 like a file, and hence the English name; the 

 third very short, and situated at a considerable 

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