£2 MALAYAN PISHES. 



A saw-fish measuring 23 feet 6 inches exclusive of the saw was 

 taken in the Bay of Bengal b}' the Government trawler '" Golden 

 Crown "" and I believe that this is the largest recorded fish. Xo 

 mention is made of the length of the saw of this specimen but it is 

 not likely to have been Sess than 7 feet. The largest saw in the 

 Baffles Museum, Singapore, measures 5 ft. lOf in. 



BEAKED-RAYS. 



(BHINOBATIDAE.) 



These are harmless, sedentary, bottom-feeding fishes which 

 subsist chiefly on shell-fish, crabs, etc. They are considered good 

 eating and are sold regularly in tlie markets. 



Tliey are known to Malays as Yu kemejan. 



ELECTRIC-RAYS. 



(TORPEDINIDAE.) 



These Bays to wdiieh the Malays have given the descriptive 

 names Pari kebas or Pari sebar have the power of inflicting 

 electric sliocks. " The fish " w^rites Dr. Giinther, " gives the elec- 

 tric shock voluntarily, when it is excited to do so in self defence, 

 or intends to stun or kill its prey. The electric currents created 

 in these fishes exercise all the other known properties of electricity ; 

 they render the needle magnetic, decompose chemical compounds, 

 and emit the spark.'' 



Our Malayan species are very small. I have a specimen of 

 the Pari kebas {Astrape dipierygia) about six tinches long and 

 •there is no record yet of specimens over 18 inches. 



When trawling on the Australian coast we took many speci- 

 mens which appeared to be betiveen two and three feet in length 

 and one or two new deck hands experienced shocks which appeared 

 to cause only momentar\' inconvenience. 



Cantor says that out of the water they may be handled with 

 impunitv. 



STING RAYS. 



{TRYGO^UDAE.) 



Xearly all tlie memliers of this family are provided with long 

 whip-like tails, which are generally armed with spines. In the 

 larger kinds these formidable spines may be as mucli as 8 or 9 

 inches in length ; and, as they wear out they are, from time to 

 time, shed and replaced by new ones growing from behind. 



These spines inflict very severe wounds, the pain of which is 

 greatly increased by the apparently poisonous cutaneous mucus 

 introduced into the wound. 



The Pari beting {Trijgon uariiak) attains a large size, 5 feet 

 or more across the disk, and a weight of well over 200 pounds. In 

 one haul of the trawl in the Bay of Bengal the " Golden Crown " 

 took four of these fish which weighed respectively 180, 170, 160 

 and 122 pounds. 



