366 



OSTRACION. 



The head aud body covered with regulars-formed bony plates, 

 fastened together so as to form an inflexible shield, so that the only 

 moveable parts are the tail, fins, mouth, and border of tho gill-opening. 

 The mouth has separate teeth. The greater number of their vertebra? 

 are firmly united together. 



FOUK-HOKNED TKUNKFISH. 



Piscis triangularis, Josston; Table 45. 



" " cornutus Clusii, Willouguby; PL I 14 



Ostracion quadricomis, Linnjeus. 



" " Intellectual Observer, No. 30, 



p. 407. 



It was formerly believed that the fishes of this remarkable 

 genus were to be met with only in the far east, or at least no- 

 where except in very warm climates ; and although when voyages 

 along the coasts of Africa and India had become frequent several 

 species became known to the observers of nature, they were 

 for a long time regarded only as strange freaks of nature, 

 which might add a new interest to the cabinets of the curious, 

 but of which the habits and distribution over the globe could 

 be only a little studied. There were indeed a few particulars 

 about them in which • naturalists who were not travellers 

 were fortunate, for with only a little care they might be 

 brought to this country without distortion of shape, which 

 was far from being the case generally with numerous fishes 

 of other classes that were imported into England from the 

 same regions — illustrations of which may be seen in the works 

 of our older writers, but especially in the representations of 

 the fishes of Amboyna in the work of Ruysch, entitled 

 "Theatrum Omnium Animalium;" and there is good reason to 

 believe that the distortions inflicted on some were made 



