DE J. MUEIE ON THE MANATEE. 29 



the rubbing of the body in transport, or other unknown causes, there was a notable 

 absence of the long sparse scattered hairs. What could be detected were chiefly short 

 and stumpy, and only visible on close inspection, and best seen on looking at the skin 

 sideways. The character of the hairs themselves was quite identical with the younger 

 creature's. 



The wasting which had followed the animal's illness, doubtless to a great extent 

 accounted for the fact that at death the outline of the cranium was distinguishable, 

 and the spine prominently visible almost throughout its entire extent. The peculiar 

 bloated bagginess adverted to in the former specimens, consequently, was greatly di- 

 minished in this case ; hence one could better appreciate the muscular anatomy of the 

 creature. 



The tail or caudal expansion was manifestly different-shaped from that previously 

 figured by me. Transcribing my notes thereon taken from the object direct, I obsei-ved 

 that the tail was almost flat below, except at the central spinal line. Above it was only 

 very slightly arched, and that, of course, most towards the root and spinal central line — 

 this latter being about an inch broad, but more faintly marked towards the posterior 

 half. A notable feature was the total absence of a terminal median upper incision ; 

 on the contrary, there was rather an extension or bulging at this part. The shape of 

 the caudal expansion, again, was decidedly tapering and pointed, in contradistinction 

 therefore to most museum specimens and to the abruptly truncate broad outline of the 

 male and female already examined by me ^. The caudal root-constriction, as seen dor- 

 sally, so well marked in these animals preserved in spirit, was nothing like so distinct 

 in this Westminster Aquarium specimen, although a special skin-fold did obtain and 

 was situate 28'5 inches from the point of the tail. On the upper surface of the caudal 

 expansion, but not at all on the under surface, were indications rather than well-marked 

 patches of the small button-like scales which formed so prominently a tegumentary 

 feature in the previous young male. I noted also in the present instance that the 

 secondary and tertiary tail skin-creases were very minute, shallow, and wholly transverse 

 in direction ; but quite at the margin they followed somewhat radially the direction of 

 the edge. 



Of the fore limbs or flippers the skin-markings on their upper sui-face in this adult 

 were simpler in appearance than in the figure from the photograph of natural size 

 shown in Trans. Zool. Soc. vol. viii. pi. 18. By this it will be understood there were 

 less transverse wrinklings and very few, indeed scarcely any, of the button-shaped 

 scaly skin-warts formerly reported in the young animal. These could, however, be 

 distinguished towards the thumb side of the flipper and near to the nails. As to the 

 shape of the entire fore limb, it was decidedly more elongated and taper-pointed than in 

 the illustration referred to of the younger animal. 



' In the absence of caudal notch and shape of tail this specimen resembles the foetus described and figured 

 by Prof. Wilder I. c. 



f2 



