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THE EDINBURGH JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY. 



to make a nest in the burrow, and gives birth to from seven to nine young, 

 which are blind. They afterwards follow the mother, who, whilst the 

 young are still helpless, never ventures to leave her hole by day. 

 They feed generally by night ; but, from the circumstance that we have 

 secured several in the daytime walking about, it may be concluded that 

 hunger forces them sometimes to go in search of food during the day. 

 Their walk is swift, but they can neither run, leap, nor climb. If pur- 

 sued, therefore, without being able to reach their hole, they roll them- 

 selves up and submit to their fate without defence. The smaller species 

 are eaten by the Indians, and considered a delicacy. The Arawaak In- 

 dians are the only tribe whom I have ascertained eat the Giant variety. 

 The common species is esteemed by many Creoles, and its flesh is white 

 and tastes like a rabbit ; hence we may suppose they receive no mercy. 

 When pursued far from their retreat, they begin digging a fresh burrow, 

 and, when half buried and laid hold of by the tail, it is so difficult to pull 

 them backwards, that they often make their escape with the loss of this 

 appendage. Their pursuers, aware of this, avoid dragging the tail with 

 all their force, while some one tickles it with a small stick, upon which it 



relinquishes its hold and is secured Ann. of Nat. Hist. V. 32. 



Eagle Ray of Yarrell, (Mi/liobatus aquila, Cuv.,) a native or the 



British Shores " Mr Travis, surgeon, of Scarborough," says Pennant, 



" had, in the summer of 1769, the tail of a Kay brought to him by a 

 fisherman of that town ; he had taken it in the sea off the coast, but flung 

 away the body." To what species, says the intelligent reporter, this tail 

 belonged, has never been satisfactorily determined. Pennant himself be- 

 lieved it to belong to the species called by the Brazilians Iaberete, but the 

 editor of his work, published in 1812, referred it to the Raia aquila of 

 Linnaeus, which is said to be a native of the Mediterranean. Dr Turton 

 omitted it in his Catalogue of the British Fauna ; and in the works of Dr 

 Fleming, and of Messrs Jenyns and Yarrell, it stands among the doubtful 

 or undetermined species, the two latter expressing a belief that the 

 tail might be referred to the Raia Giorna with as much probability as the 

 R. aquila; and, consequently, Mr Yarrell has given a figure of both these 

 species, to enable future inquirers the more readily to determine the ques- 

 tion, should an opportunity occur for doing so. Aware of these particulars, 

 it was with no ordinary delight that I received a perfect specimen of the 

 Raia aquila in September last, which had been found that morning on the 

 shore of our bay (Berwick) near Spittal. It was quite fresh and in fine 

 preservation ; and proves, as I think, that the conjecture of Mr Travis' 

 fish being the aquila is perfectly correct. There is, at all events, now no 

 doubt that this species is a native of our seas. The extreme breadth of 

 this specimen was 21 inches ; from the snout to the insertion of the tail, 



13; length of the tail, 21 J Dr Johnston Proceedings of Ber. Nat. 



Club, p. 205. 



METEOROLOGY. 



ON THE NATURE OF METEORS. 



As bearing upon this point, we shall notice very shortly, first, a commu- 

 nication which was made by Sir J. Herschell to the Royal Society on 

 March 21, 1839, and which has recently been published. A " meteor," 

 we are informed, exploded on the 13th of October in the Cold Bokkweld, 

 Cape of Good Hope, with a noise so loud as to be heard over an area of 

 more than 70 miles in diameter, in broad daylight, about half-past nine a.m. 

 It was seen traversing the atmosphere, north-east of the point, where it ex- 

 ploded, 60 miles, of a silvery hue, the air at the time calm, hot, and sultry, the 

 barometer at Worcester standing at the lowest point of the range. The explo- 

 sion was accompanied by a noise like that from artillery, followed by a fall 

 of pieces of matter, portions of which fell or were dispersed to the distance 

 of five miles from each other. Some falling on hard ground were smashed, 

 others in moist ground plunged into the earth, and one piece is reported to 

 have made a hole three feet broad, and sunk deep. It is stated to have been 

 so soft as to admit of being cut with a knife when it first fell, and hard- 

 ened subsequently. The original solid mass was estimated at five cubic 

 feet, viz. being the sum of all the portions which fell to the ground. A por- 

 tion of this stone was analyzed by Dr Faraday, and did not remarkablv 

 differ from other aerolites. 



Contrasted with this meteoric stone, we allude next to the occurrence 

 of a very different meteor, in an opposite quarter of the globe, viz. in 

 North America, as described by Professor Loomis, Ohio, (Silliman's 

 Journ. XXXV. for April 1839.) On the evening of May 18, 1839, a 

 very remarkable " meteor" was seen throughout most of the northern 

 part of the United States, and a considerable district of Canada. It at- 

 tracted general attention from its size, brilliancy, train, length of path, and 

 slowness of apparent motion. Observers, almost without exception, 

 pronounced it the most remarkable meteor they ever saw. This led Mr 

 Loomis to make numerous inquiries, and careful investigations, concerning 

 it, some of which we shall shortly state. The meteor was seen throughout 

 all the north of Ohio, in Michigan, in the states of New York and^New 



Hampshire, and in various parts of Canada. From calculation, the height, 

 when first seen, appears to have been 28 miles ; at the time of explosion, 

 32 miles ; and, at an intermediate point, 35 miles. The length of the path 

 was 218 miles, and the apparent average velocity 30 miles a second ; its 

 absolute diameter three-quarters of a mile. No noise attended. Mr L. 

 adds, " This meteor must have consisted of matter exceedingly rare, and 

 of very feeble cohesion. During nearly its entire route, new portions of 

 matter were continually detaching themselves from the main body, and 

 this finally divided itself into a large number of fragments. We have, per- 

 haps, no means of forming any precise estimate of its density, yet it is 

 doubtful whether it exceeded that of atmospheric air. The light was, 

 without doubt, produced by combustion. The meteor, by rapid motion 

 through the upper regions of the air, generated heat sufficient to set itself 

 on fire, and it was probably consumed in the course of 10". Nothing is 

 learned to have fallen to the earth from the meteor, and the appearances 

 were those of a body entirely consumed by combustion." In conclusion, 

 Mr L. compares this meteor with the known phenomena of shooting stars, 

 and is of opinion that the meteor of the 18th of May did not essentially 

 differ from the ordinary shooting stars, except as to magnitude. For re- 

 flections we have no space, and may safely leave them with the reader. 



BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES. 



Illustrations of the Breeds of the Domestic Animals of the British Islands, con- 

 sisting of a series of coloured Lithographic Prints, with descriptive Me- 

 moirs. By Professor Low. Longmans. 



Though the first number only of this work has come to hand, yet we are 

 solicitous to lose no time in presenting it to the favourable regard of our 

 readers. The high character of the intelligent Professor, and the enter- 

 prise of the eminent publishers, raised our anticipations high as to the 

 execution of the work, and they have in no degree been disappointed. 

 This number, as is proposed of the others, consists of four plates, with 

 coloured figures of from four to eight animals, or more. The originals, by 

 Mr Sheils, form a part of the beautiful collection of the paintings of the 

 Agticultural Museum of the College of Edinburgh. They are drawn on stone 

 by Fairland, from coloured drawings by Nicholson, and do the highest credit 

 to all concerned. In this number, there is one representation of the wild 

 or white forest breed, two ot the Pembroke breed, and four of the West- 

 Highland, all, as it appears to us, excellent ; together with separate me- 

 moirs of these breeds, giving full details of their natural history, their 

 peculiar valuable properties, and how they may be improved, if possible, 

 in some circumstances, and injured, as is frequently done, in others. The 

 Professor's account of the wild white breed we consider admirable, and 

 the whole work cannot fail to be highly esteemed by the Naturalist as 

 well as the Agriculturist. We strongly recommend it to our public lib- 

 raries, to the stock farmer, and to the many enlightened and honourable 

 gentlemen, who are desirous of widening the channels of our native in- 

 dustry. 



The Naturalist's Library, conducted by Sir W. Jardine, Bart. 

 Entomology. Vol. VI. Bees. 



We feel happy in being called so soon to notice the appearance of 

 another volume of this beautiful and interesting miscellany, — one on Bees. 

 It is occupied chiefly with our common Honey- Bee, insisting largely on 

 its anatomy and physiology, the peculiarities of the several classes of the 

 hive, also of their architecture, swarms, diseases, foes, together with the 

 practical management of the apiary. This portion, we are led to under- 

 stand, is from the pen of Mr Dunbar, the incumbent of Applegaith, 

 a well known cultivator of natural history, whose tastes have led him 

 peculiarly to study the wonderful doings of these tiny insects. This part 

 of the volume is replete with original and valuable matter, and pleads 

 strongly for the humane and enlightened treatment of these interesting 

 beings. The other portion, upon the wild and foreign species, is from the 

 elegant pen of Mr Duncan, and well maintains the character of that 

 author's esteemed writings. The whole is illustrated by thirty- six coloured 

 engravings, in which, in addition to many species of bees, the foreign 

 ones, larger and more gaudy than our own, we have illustrations 

 of their anatomical structure, their cells and hives, and their enemies, 

 whether mammals, birds, or insects. Finally, we have a portrait of the 

 illustrious Huber, from an original in the possession of his sister, along 

 with a short memoir. Altogether, it forms a truly interesting volume, 

 and will not be esteemed the least popular of this very popular series. 



Edinburgh: Published for the Proprietor, at the Office, No. 13, Hill Street. 

 London : Smith, Elder, and Co., 65, CornhiU. Glasgow, and the West of 

 Scotland : John Smith and Son ; and John Macleod. Dublin : George 

 Young. Paris : J. B. Balliere, Rue de l'Ecole de Medecine, No. 13, bis. 



THE EDINBURGH PRINTING COMPANY. 



