ENGLISH FISHES. 



431 



53, in the other 56 longitudinal rows, closely con« 

 nected : in one specimen there was a single large 

 spine, with a broad base before one of the eyes, 

 so that it is possible older fish may be more spinous 

 on that part ; above the eyes, the spinulai were 

 rather larger than those which cover the whole 

 upper surface. 



The only two specimens that have come under 

 examination, were females ; the largest of which, 

 did not exceed twenty inches in length, of which 

 the tail was nine : the breadth fourteen. As I 

 have not been able to ascertain this fish as a de- 

 scribed species, it may be proper to remark, that 

 it appears to be confounded with Raia shagrinea, 

 both being indiscriminately called Dan-cow by 

 the fishermen in the west of England. Without 

 entering into all the distinguishing characters of 

 these two fishes, it will be sufficient to repeat, that 

 the Shagreen Ray has invariably two rows of spines 

 on the tail, but none along the ridge, and both 

 sexes are similar. 



In Donovan's British Fishes, a new species of 

 Ray is denominated Radiata, from the supposed 

 peculiarity of the base of the smaller spines being 

 radiated ; this conformation, however, is not ex- 

 clusively belonging to that species, for the small 

 spines that roughen the back of Microocellata, and 

 all other species, if examined by a lens, will be 

 found of that structure ; this character, therefore^ 



