COLLECTION OF FISH. 4 2 ^ 



live in fresh water. The fishes of this genus fix 

 themselves upon others in the manner we have 

 described, and penetrate into their bodies, which 

 they devour by degrees with the sharp and pointed 

 teeth placed at the bottom of their mouth. There 

 are but two species of mjxine known : the 

 one, the blind gastrobranchus {inyxine glutinosa, 

 Lin.,) inhabits the North «seas; the other, which 

 M. de Lacepede has named dombeyan, because 

 Dombey discovered it, is very rare. M. Dela- 

 lande however has brought us several specimens 

 from the Cape of Good Hope. 



The second family, that of the selacians, is com- 

 posed of the sharks, rays, and fishes allied to 

 them. It comprehends a great number of spe- 

 cies which deserve our attention, either from 

 their gigantic size and their voracity, or from 

 the use which is made of them in the arts. The 

 first genus is that of the sharks commonly known 

 by the name of dog-fish ; their rough skin is em- 

 ployed in polishing different surfaces, such as 

 wood, ivory, etc. M. Cuvier has divided them 

 into twelve sub-genera. We have forty-one spe- 

 cies of them; the largest is the basking shark 

 (squalus maximus), from the North seas, which 

 is sometimes upwards of 3o feet in length. The 

 specimen in the middle of the room was cast 

 upon our shores by a north west storm. The 



