878 



SQUALID.E. 



It swims with great ease and swiftness from the large size of 

 its pectoral fins ; and when caught with a baited hook at sea, 

 and drawn upon deck, the sailors' first act is to chop off its 

 tail to prevent the mischief otherwise to be apprehended from 

 its great strength. 



Cuvier, in the Regne Animal, says the only good figure of 

 this fish is that in Belon, page 60 ; and having no access to a 

 specimen, that figure has been carefully copied, and the fol- 

 lowing description is from M. Risso. 



The body is elongated, covered with a hard skin, ash 

 brown above and whitish below. The head is large ; the 

 muzzle depressed, short, and pierced with numerous pores : 

 the mouth is large and wide ; the tongue short and rough : 

 the upper jaw furnished with six rows of triangular teeth, 

 thin, nearly straight at the edges, and serrated ; in the under 

 jaw four rows, sharper than those above, but less com- 

 pressed : the irides are pearl white ; pectoral fins very large ; 

 the first dorsal fin elevated ; the ventral fins small ; the anal 

 fin is opposed to the second dorsal ; the tail is divided, form- 

 ing two lobes, of which the upper lobe is the longest. 



It is most frequently seen in the Mediterranean during 

 spring and autumn. 



The vignette represents another species, which has also 

 been called White Shark, and may assist observers on the 

 coast. 



