13G 
Remarks on 
Art. VI. Remarks on the Physalia pelagica. By 
Andrew Sinclair, Esq., Surgeon R.N. 
Tiie Physalia is one of the first objects that excite the 
curiosity of the voyager from Europe on approaching 
the tropics, and point out to him that with a change of 
climate he may expect new species of animals. This 
singular one, from its extreme lightness, its graceful form, 
and gaudy colours, riding in the middle of the ocean like 
a vessel at anchor, attracted the attention of the earliest 
navigators; and every nation in Europe has given it a 
name in its own language. All of them refer to its re¬ 
semblance to a ship : thus the Spaniards call it a caraval 
the French la fregate , and it is w r ell known to English 
sailors by the name of “ the Portuguese man-of-war.” 
Its nature, however, is but yet imperfectly understood, 
and naturalists are still puzzled where to place it in their 
✓ systematic arrangements. Linnaeus classed it among¬ 
st/ the Holothurim , or sea caterpillars; Cuvier among 
the Actinia, or sea nettles, and Lamarck with the 
Physophora; and, lastly, Blainville joins it with 
others under the name of Physograda , but still as pos¬ 
sessing anomalous characters. The great difficulty of 
preserving the animal, and the distance from land where 
it is found, have, no doubt, been the causes of our 
knowledge of it being still imperfect. The only speci¬ 
mens I have seen attempted to be preserved were dried 
in a collapsed state on glass, and then it becomes a mere 
film on its surface. The best method I have found, both 
for studying the habits of the animal, and for drying it 
afterwards, is first to lift it carefully out of the sea by 
the bladder, then to place it in a tub or large vessel 
filled with salt water. It will soon begin to move, 
slowly, dilating or contracting its crest, whilst one set of 
filaments below, of a tubular shape, move about as in 
