o f new birds therefore is aftonifhing, when compared to that of
the known, iyftem, and mult prove what great expeditions are toi
be formed of thofe continents, which have notliitherto been muchi
examined.. Theiaquatic genera are, as. we. have- already obferved,.
very, numerous; and among them we.have the fame remark to.make;
which we- have already made on the plants, namely that the mods
copions: genera have Hill received the great^ft additions, . T o the
genus o f Anas we. have, added, nine new .fpecies, .to that o f the
Pelecanus: five, and to the P-rbcellarice. twelve. In the fame manhea
among the land birds, we have feven.new parrots,, fix pigeons,, and?,
eight fly-catchers,
A M P H I B I' A..
T h e few amphibia which w e met with in the South:Sea, are confined
to the tropical countries; they are, i ft . the caret turtle which
gives the tortoife-lhelL proper, for .manufacture, {tejludo- imbricata
L in n .) 2d, the green turtle,. (. te/iudoi-midas) which.is fit for. eating.;
3d. the common lizard, ( lacerta agilis, L in n .) 4th. the gecko;
{.lacerta gecko } 5 th. the amphibious fnake, {coluber laticaudatus^
L in n .) and 6th, the anguisplatura, Linn, among which, none is
poifonous.
FISH ES.
O R G A N I C B O D I E S .
ANIMAL
F I S H E S. KINGDOM
Th e South Sea is rich in fifli, and has a great variety o f fpecies;
for though no branch o f natural prodtnftions, -was . attended with
more difficulties in the. colledion to; us, not; only from our very
fhort Hay in many places, but likewife becaufe we were obliged
almoft wholly to depend upon the natives o f the feyeral; countries,
for this article, there being no expert filher-men on board; yet the
fea in various .places yielded us the number of feventy-fo.ur fpecies
unknown heretofore; befides about forty which are defcribed in the
Syftem o f Nature o f the celebrated Linna;us.. Among them we
-have only made one new genus, which till new has lain latent
among the cbeetodontes, but ought ju-ftly to be feparated from
them. T h e accurate obferver, Prof. Forlkal, whofe premature •
death in .Arabia, every lover o f -fcience muft fincerely lament, had
the fame idea, though I knew nothing o f it, as his book was not
publifhed till after my return to Europe; he calls the new genus
■ acanthurus, and I gave it the name of harpurus. The greatefl part of
.thé fiih in the.South Sea are very good eating, many of them are
■ delicious, and would do honour to a Roman feaft; only a few of
-the branchioftegous are noxious, o f which we felt the fatal effects,
-as I fhall mention in the fequel. M , de Buffon has obferved, that
:nature feems to pleafe herfelf in calling feveral beings.very nearly in
C c 2 . . tlle