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flat on the other, (Lining, with two furrows and a ridge 
between them.— EJfential Charad.tr. Corolla one-petalled, 
funnel-form; capfule two-celled, two-feeded. 
Species. 1. Diodia Virginica, or Virginian diodia : Item 
branching, procumbent, fmooth and even, red; branches 
alternate; leaves oppofite ; flowers white. The calyx 
in fome is two-leaved only, in others unequally four¬ 
leaved, that is with two very minute leaves placed in the 
interftices of the larger, and this even feems to be the 
more natural number. Capfule fmall, of a pale bay co¬ 
lour, the furface often chagreened with very minute, li¬ 
near, acuminate, chaffy, white, fquamules, efpgcially 
towards the end ; but which, when the fruit is ripe, are 
eafiiy wiped off, fo that it is ufually fmooth. Receptacle 
none ; the feeds being fixed to the middle of the parti¬ 
tion ; thefe are blackifli. Native of Virginia. 1 
2. Diodia (implex, or fimple-ftem diodia'-. ftera herba¬ 
ceous, Ample, almoft eredt, fmooth, and even ; leaves 
ovate-lanceolate. '3. Diodia proflrata, or proftrate dio- 
flia: (lem fuffruticofe, fubdivided ; branches proftrate, 
filiform ; leaves linear, fomewhat hirfute, revolute. ■ 4. 
Dio'dia fcandens, or climbing diodia : fiem fcandent, fuf¬ 
fruticofe ; leaves ovate-lanceolate, rigid, rugged. 5. Dio¬ 
dia farmentofa, or fhrubby diodia: fiem flaccid, flirubfcy; 
branches oppofite, fpreading; leaves oblong, acute, fome¬ 
what rugged. Natives of the Weft Indies : the lecond, 
third, and fifth, of Jamaica, and the fourth of Hifpaniola. 
6. Diodia vertici'llata, or whorl-leaved aiodia : fmooth; 
leaves lanceolate, in whorls, rugged at the edge ; fiem 
herbaceous, ereCt. Stem Ample, a foot high, fmooth, 
as is alfo the whole plant, even. Leaves feflile, from 
five to eight in each whorl, unequal, without any vifible 
veins or nerves, not marked with lines, very rugged 
about the edge, connected by a flipulaceous ciliate mem¬ 
brane. Flowers feveral together, in whorls, inclofed 
by the flipule ; the terminating whorl larger than the 
others. Capfule two-celled, linear, fomewhat comprelT 
ed, ciliate on both fides at the top, crowned with two 
teeth. Seed Angle in each cell, .linear. Native of the 
ifland of Santa Cruz ; Cent by Pflug. 
DI'ODCN,/. [^o^or, Gr. two-teeth.] In ichthyology, 
the Sea-Porcupine, Globe-Fish, &c. a genus belong¬ 
ing to the order branchioftegi: the generic characters 
of which are : jaws protruded beyond the gums, each 
ending in a fharp point like a tooth, undivided; and no 
ventral fins. Body covered with fpots, and armed with 
fpines: thefe fpines are hollow within, fpotted without, 
and terminating in three articulations, which give them a 
triangular fhape; they are covered up to the point with 
the proper fkin of the body, and are moveable at the will 
of the animal, like the quills of the porcupine: they 
raife them up as a defence when attacked, and thus they 
feem to (land midway between Allies and quadrupeds. 
■Some have a round body, whence they are called globe- 
hjh ; others are oblong. They ufe the jaws in the man¬ 
ner of teeth ; for, by ending fharp, they ferve the office 
of cutting teeth. With the power of ereCting their 
fpines, they alfo poflefs the faculty of inflating or fwel- 
ling out the body, on the appearance of an enemy. They 
have only five fins, two pefforals 1 , with one anal, dorfal, 
and tail. Thefe, fifh are found at the Cape of Good Hope, 
in the Teas of the Eafl and Weft Indies, and in the Ara¬ 
bian Gulf. They moftly feed on crabs, fhrimps, and 
fnails; growing from one to two feet in length. The 
Greeks and Romans make no mention of thefe fifh. 
1. Diodon atinga, the oblong porcupine-fifh. This is 
fpecifically dillinguifhed by its oblong body, and rounded 
fpines ; having twenty-one rays in the pectoral fin, feven- 
teen in the anal, ten in the tail, and fourteen in the dor¬ 
fal. T he head is fmall, broad above, flatted at the fides: 
the noftrilsare Angle, exaCtly midway between the mouth 
and eyes: the eyes are large, pupil black, iris yellow : 
the aperture of the mouth is fmall; and the upper jaw 
protrudes a little over the under one. The fpines and 
ab<e whole body are covered with black fpots., The back 
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is broad, round, and of a blackifli lute: the fide fome¬ 
what comprelfed, ana of a bluifli colour, becoming white 
towards the belly, which is broad and long. The fins 
are all yellow, fpotted with black, and edged with brown, 
with ramified rays. This fpecies is found in the Ameri¬ 
can feas, and round the Cape. It comes towards the 
fliores to feek its food, which confifts of fliell-fifli. Ac¬ 
cording to Pifo, the males are fmaller than the females ; 
but the fiefh is better and more tender; the fame author 
adds, that the gall is abfolutely poifonous; he afferts, 
that if the gall-bladder flVould burft in preparing the fifli 
for table, or fnould be accidentally left in the body, the 
perfon who cats of it prefently becomes infenfible, the 
tongue turns paralytic, the limbs grow ftiff, a cold fweut 
feizes the body, and the patient peri flies miferably, un- 
lefs immediate relief can be had : but this feems to want 
confirmation. It is often taken in nets with other fiflies, 
or may be- caught with a line baited with the tail of a, 
crab : it grows from twelve to fifteen inches long. When 
irritated, it fwells out its belly and eredts its fpines, and 
is faid to make a hilling noife when taken out of the wa- 
ter; but this may probably be occafioned by the ruffling 
of the fpines on being raifed up. The inteflinal ca¬ 
nal has feveral finuofities fimilar to quadrupeds. The 
liver is large, divided into three lobes, reaching to the 
anus; but it does not appear, as in other filh, immediate¬ 
ly upon opening rite belly, nor till after removing the 
fiomach and inteflinal canal. Ruyfch fays, that the fkin 
becomes exceedingly hard when dried, and that the In¬ 
dians make helmets of it; which if made up with the 
prickles on, are faid to be mufket and fabre proof. 
The diodon atinga holocanthus, or long-fpined atinga, is 
a variety of this, though made a diftinCt fpecies by Ce- 
pede. It differs in the fhape of the tail-fin, which is hol¬ 
lowed out in the form of a crefcent. The back is more 
convex, and the fpines on the head and neck are*longer 
and fironger. 
2. Diodon hiflrix, the orbicular porcupine-fifh : fpe- 
cific charadter; body fomewhat round; fpines triangu¬ 
lar, long, and (harp. It has twenty-two rays in thspec¬ 
toral fin, twelve in the anal, ten in the tail, and fourteen 
in the dorfal. The head is fmall; the eyes large, with 
a black pupil and yellow iris: the noflrils are near the 
eyes. The aperture of the gills is crefcent-fhaped, and 
clofe to the pedtoral fin. The back is of a bluifli colour; 
fides and belly white. The fins are all fliort, with black 
fpots and branched rays; and the body is covered with 
light and dark brown fpots. The fpines are longer on 
the fides than on the back and belly. This fpecies is 
found not only in America, but in the Red Sea, and near 
the ihores of Japan. At New York, where it appears 
only in the fumraer months, it goes by the name of toad- 
JiJh: Dr Schoepf obferves, that he found the inteftines, 
which are extremely fine and thin, filled with the tritu¬ 
rated fliells of crabs and large fnails. It is wonderful that 
fuch hard fubftances can pals through thefe delicate in¬ 
teftines without wounding them. The cavity of the belly 
is very capacious, and the vifcera by no means fill it; 
yet the fifli can occafionally further diftend it with wind. 
The mufcles which move the jaws are very fmall; but 
thofe belonging to-the fins are ftrong. It grows eight or 
ten inches long, and when fwelled out or inflated, is 
nearly round. This fpecies is little regarded as food, 
the flelh being lean and hard ; neverthelefs, according to 
father Dutertre, the Americans fifh them up for amufe- 
ment. They throw in a line baited with the tail of a 
fea-crab ; the fifli approaches, but, being afraid of the 
line, he makes feveral turns and trials round the bait, 
and at length nibbles at it, but pretends to reject it, and 
pafles by, ffrikingit with his tail, as if he did not regard 
it. But, if the rod be kept fteady, he prefently turns 
back, feizes the bait, and fwallows hook and all. When 
he finds himfelf taken, he becomes enraged, bridles up 
his fpines, fwells out his belly, and endeavours to wound 
every thing that is near him. Finding this of 110 avail, 
