No. 523] NOTES ON BEAUFORT FISHES 397 



rows. Smith in his "Fishes of North Carolina" 2 notes 

 three large specimens from Beaufort: one of 25 inches, 

 another of 23 inches, and a third (length not given) which 



On May 31, a lty inch specimen of the cutlass-fish, 

 Trichiurus Upturns, was taken at Kockfish Rock. On 

 June 5, another specimen, 15] inches long over all, was 

 taken at the same place. These young fish showed clearly 

 the oral breathing valve, which is perhaps more plainly 

 seen in the mouth of the adult than in any other fish 

 known to the writer. One of these fish had had a bite 

 taken out of its dorsal fin and region just over the hinder 

 edge of the pectorals. This has failed to regenerate and 

 the wound had healed, leaving a crescent cut out of the 

 fin. 



Not only are these the smallest specimens of this fish 

 ever taken at Beaufort, but they are further interesting 

 because of the fact that both so amply justify the name 

 "hair-tail," since in each the tail is prolonged backward 

 in a long delicate whiplash-like organ, much slenderer in 

 proportion to the size of the body than is the case in the 

 adult. They were probably two, quite certainly not more 

 than three years old. The writer has obtained eggs by 

 "stripping" this fish in August, and sperms from males 

 caught in July. Nothing, I believe, is known of the em- 

 bryology of the fish, but Lutken, 3 in 1880, figured and 

 described the young of two allied forms, Gempylus ser- 

 pens and Neolotus tripes. 



On the same date and at the same place as the preced- 

 ing, there were taken four specimens of the cow-nosed 

 ray, Rhinoptera bonasus. These were all about of one 

 size, averaging 24 inches wide. A female after being 

 clubbed on the head until insensible, gave birth, while 

 being cut open, to two young measuring Si inches long 

 and 13 h inches wide. This premature delivery of the 

 young, brought about by muscular contraction due to re- 



