THE EAGLE RAY. 
211 
by it, the Sting Ray is furnished with a weapon even more to be dreaded, and capable of 
causing a still more serious injury. 
The tail itself of this species is long, flexible, whip-like, and smooth, so that were it 
unaided by any additional armature, it could only inflict a sharp and stinging blow, which, 
however painful, would do no more damage than the cut of a horsewhip. The tail is fur- 
ther armed with a projecting bony spine, very sharp at the point, and furnished along 
both edges with sharp cutting teeth. . When attacked or irritated, the Sting Ray suddenly 
strikes its whip-like tail around the offender in lasso fashion, and holding him tightly 
against the barbed spine, wields the latter with such strength and rapidity that it lacerates 
the flesh to a frightful and dangerous extent, in some cases even causing the death of the 
victim. 
Along the coast, where the offensive powers of this fish are familiarly and practically 
known, an opinion prevails that the bony spine is supplied with poison. This notion, how- 
ever, is one of the many popular errors on similar subjects, having been founded on the 
aggravated inflammation that sometimes follows the wounds caused by the Sting Ray. There 
is no poison whatever in this bone, and any such symptoms are due, not to the inherent venom 
of the weapon, but to the unsound constitution of the sufferer. 
The reader will at once perceive the exact resemblance between the spine of the Sting Ray 
and the many-barbed spears used by the savage inhabitants of the Pacific islands. In fact, this 
spine not only furnished them with the original idea of those cruel weapons, but is constantly 
taken from the fish and affixed to the shaft of a lance. In their eyes, its great merit — and one 
which they imitate in their manufactured weapons— is that when the spear is struck into the 
body of a foe, the jagged blade is sure to snap asunder at the point where it enters the body, 
leaving several barbs fixed in the wound without any handle by which they may be withdrawn. 
It is found that in the Sting Ray, a second spine exists below the first, which is provided 
in order to supply the place of the first in case it should be broken off or dragged out. 
The Sting Ray is in some places called the Pike Flaiee, probably on account of the very 
red color of the flesh when cut open. This fish is not approved for the table, being rank and 
disagreeable in flavor. 
The color of the Sting Ray is grayish-yellow above, taking a slaty-blue tint towards the 
middle of the body, and spotted with brown when the creature is young. Below, it is white. 
The eyes are golden color, the temporal orifice behind each eye is extremely large, and the tail 
is very thick and muscular at the base. The spine is set about one-third of its length from the 
base. The mouth and teeth are small. 
The Sting Ray of our waters is the same as that of Europe. It ranges from Cape Cod 
to Florida. In various places it is called Whip Ray, Clam-cracker, and Sting-a-ree, or Whip- 
sting Ray. A large form is common off Long Island, with tail of five feet in length. 
Ix some respects, such as the long tail and double-barbed spine with which it is armed, 
the Eagle Rat ( Myliobatis aquila) bears some resemblance to the preceding species, but 
must be distinguished from that fish by the projecting head, the bluntness of the snout, the 
very great length and comparative tenuity of the tail, the shortness of the spine, and the 
diminutive size of the temporal apertures. In some places this fish is called the Whip Ray, 
in allusion to the extreme length of the slender tail. 
The flesh of the Eagle Ray is not eaten, being hard, rank, and disagreeable, but the liver 
is thought to be eatable, and a large quantity of good oil is obtained from it. It sometimes 
attains to a very large size, weighing as much as eight hundred pounds. Its color is dark 
brown above, deepening towards the edges, and grayish- white below. 
The Eagle Ray is a Mediterranean species, found occasionally in English waters. Its 
great wing-like sides give it a resemblance to a bird. Its long tail and double barbed spine at 
its base give it a most singular and vicious aspect. 
Befoee quitting these fish entirely, a short notice must be given of several interesting 
species, of which figures cannot be inserted for want of space. 
