RAIA. 



water ; it inhabits tliofe places where the boUum is fandy, 

 and buries itfelf iuperficially by flinging the fand over its 

 back with a fort of vibration, which it gives to its extremi- 

 ties. It is in this filuation that the torpedo aflunilhes and 

 terrifies the unwary paflenger, who inadvertently treads upon 

 it, by the exertion of its eleftrical or benumbing faculty. 

 This power is fcrviceable to the animal in two important re- 

 fpeCls ; as a means of defence againll voracious fidics, and 

 as a method by which lie is enabled to procure his fubiiftence 

 from among the fmaller tribes ; for the former, when elt.c- 

 trificd, are deprived of all poffibility of feizing their prey ; 

 and the latter, after having unwarily approached the tor- 

 pedo, and received the fliock, are incapable of making their 

 efcape. (See Torpedo.) The food of the torpedo is fur- 

 mullets and plaife ; the former are fo fwift, that it is impoi- 

 fible for the torpedo to take them by purfuit, and as this 

 fifh has been found in its ftomach, it is prefnmed that it was 

 taken by means of tlie eleftrical ihock. The torpedo has 

 been taken off Pembroke, at Torbay, and near Waterfurd 

 in Ireland. It is caught like other flat fifh, with the trawl, 

 and is commonly found in water forty fathom deep, in com- 

 pany with other fpecies of this genus. 



* Bads ; the Skate. This Ipecies is varied ; the middle 

 of the back is fmooth ; the tail is befet with a lingle row of 

 fpines. [t inhabits the European ocean, and is thought to 

 be the largeft lifli of the genus : the body above is cinereous, 

 fometimes with a few black lines, beneath white, with waved 

 lines of black dots ; round the eyes are numerous fmall, 

 hooked fpines ; in the males the fins are full of fpines. Of 

 all the larger filhes, the llcates are the moil numerous, and 

 their numbers are in a great meafure owing to their fize, and 

 to the proteftion afforded them by thofe frightful fpines 

 which nature has afforded them. There is not one of the ra- 

 pacious tribes, excepting, perhaps, the cachalot and white 

 (hark, that has a fwallow fufficiently large to receive them, 

 and evcnthele are probably deterred from their purpofes of 

 deftruftion by the armour with which their prey is covered. 

 Of fome the fize is fuch as to defy all powers of deftruftion 

 which even the fhark himfelf poffefies. In England fome 

 of the fpecies have been taken, weighing upwards of two 

 hundred weight, but even this is far inferior to their enor- 

 mous bulk ia other parts of the world. Near the ifland 

 Guadaloupe, a i-ay was killed more than twenty-five feet 

 long, and almoff fourteen broad. After all, tlie fifties of 

 this tribe probably attain a much larger fize than that of any 

 individual which has ever yet been examined. It is only the 

 fmalleft of the kind that approach the (hores ; the largefl 

 continue for ever prowling at the bottom in the unfathomable 

 caverns of the ocean, where they continue perhaps to grow 

 for a century. 



The fifhes generate in March and April, at which time 

 they fwim near the furface of the water, feveral males pur- 

 fuing one female. The females call their purfes, as they 

 are called, in May, and continue to produce till September : 

 they are very prolific, not lefs than three hundred eggs having 

 been found in the bouy of a fingle female. The rays gene- 

 rally frequent thpfe parts of the fea where the bottom is 

 black and muddy, where they devour every thing indifcri- 

 minately, but they are more delicate with regard to a baited 

 hook. They devour any putrid fubftances whatever, but 

 if the bait has been taken up and fuffered to lie tor any 

 time in the open air, they will not touch it ; they appear to 

 perceive the line, and to dread it ; but the impulfe of hun- 

 ger overcomes th-ir caution, and even though they perceive 

 the danger, if thoroughly hungry, they devour the bait, as 

 if regardlefs of the confeqnences. See Skate. 



OxYRiNCHUs ; Sharp-nofed Raia. Varied ; middle of 

 Vol. XXIX. 



the back with ten fpinous tubercles. This is fimilar in fliapc 

 to the fkate, but with a longer and /harper fnout : the co- 

 lour of the whole upper i)art is cinereous, with feveral pale 

 or whitiih fpots, intermixed with a few (light dulky (Ireaks 

 or variegations ; beneath it is white, with duflcy or blueifh 

 flreaks ; down the back and tail runs a fingle row of fpines, 

 and a few others arc placed about the region of the eyes : the 

 fides of the tail arc alfo fometimes furnilhed with a row «f 

 fmaller or weaker fpines than thofe on the upper part ; the 

 eyes are large, as is alfo the mouth. This fpecies, like the 

 flcate, fometimes, but not often, is taken of a very confi- 

 derable fize. It is a native of the Mediterranean and 

 Northern feas. 



MiKALETus. This fpecies has a fmooth belly and back : 

 it has fpines near the eyes, and a triple row of them on the 

 tail. It inhabits the Mediterranean ; the body above is 

 marked with an occellate fpol. 



* FuLLONiCA ; the Fuller Ray. The back is covered with 

 fpines ; the eyes with a fingle row ; pedoral fins and tail 

 with a triple row. It inhabits the European feas ; grows 

 to a large fize ; the body above is cinereous, with mimcrous 

 black fpots ; beneath it is white. The fnout of this fifli is 

 fhort and pointed ; the niclitant membrane is frino-ed ; the 

 teeth are fmall and fharp ; and the tail is flender." It has 

 been thought by fome authors that this is only a variety of 

 the next fpecies. 



* RuBU.s ; Rough Ray. The back of this fpecies has a 

 fingle fpine ; and the tail is befet with a triple row of fpines. 

 This is greatly allied to the thornback, but covered with 

 more numerous fpines, every part of the fliin on the upper 

 furface being muricated with fliarp curved aculei of different 

 fizcs : of thefe, one row of the largeft runs down the middle of 

 the back, and three, or fometimes five, along the tail ; others 

 are difperfed about the eyes and the flaps of the pettoral 

 fins ; the general colour isayellowifh or whitifli-grey, fome- 

 times variegated with dufky or brownilh clouds and flreaks ; 

 the under fide is white, and befet with very numerous fcat- 

 tered fpines, but lefs llrong than thofe on the upper fide. 

 It is about the fize of a thornback. Mr. Pennant mentions 

 one that meafured nearly three feet from the nofe to the tip 

 of the tail. It is a native of the Mediterranean and other 

 feas. 



V>. -Teeth obtufe. 

 Species. 



Sephen. Body nearly round ; tail twice as long as the 

 body, winged beneath, and with two long fpines above, fer- 

 rate on eacli fide. It inhabits the Red fea, and isfometimei 

 fo large, as to reach three yards acrofs ; body above brown, 

 with three rows of large hemifpherical tubercles down the 

 middle of the back ; beneath it is quite flat and fmooth, and 

 it is of a reddifli-white. It is from the iliin of this fpecies 

 that the beautiful fubllance called Galuchat is prepared by 

 the French, and which, being coloured with blue, green, 

 or red, according to the fancy of the article, and afterwards 

 polifhed, is fo frequently ufed for various kinds of cafes, te- 

 lefcope tubes, &c. For this purpofe the fmaller or younger 

 Ipecimens are preferred ; the tubercles in the more advanced 

 or full-grown animals being too large. 



There is a variety of this fpecies : the length of the fpe- 

 cimen defcribed by IDr. RufTeli was about g\ inches ; the tail 

 is about two feet nine inches long ; the colour of the whole 

 animal is a dull leaden above, with a deep blue tail ; beneath 

 it is dufliy white ; en the middle of the back there are only 

 two pearl-formed tubercles inftead of three ; the tail is fur- 

 nilhed with a fharp fpine and a fin beneath. It is a native of 

 the Indian feas, 



X X Aqitila. 



