m
Rokke.
; N A T IJ R A L H I SIP O R Y of N O R W A Y.
ome each fide,-; and looks like a crelcedt. - The .tail?-is quiteJeven
at; the end,, and refembles labirebibroom cut tranfverfly| along
the back runs a ftnall undulated ridge, and under the belly -is a
piece of; foft fpungy exerefcence, with which it fticks faft to the
rocks like a frail; and itrequires fcme cflrength ;ito get. it looft.
The female, or Rugn-Rexe,!ds«fcmëlhing larger thin theRogb-
Kalcn,. or male, and of a. blue colour. They ejeél thèir Ipalvn
in large quantities about Whitfuntide i hence, the Filh has its
Norwegian name. The fatter it ’is the mote- it approaches to a
red cqloaf, heing btherwife grcenifh. . The body, as I .obftrved
before, is.but ftnall, and,- as I anjr: informed, .ster^t deliebte.food;
for. I have never tafted it;, The Otter is very fond, of this Filh,
and it often falls a prey to him. 4 As the Rogn-Kallen never bites
at any bait, and loves deep water, it isi feldom caught, bttifc hly
"accident in the : Cod or 'Salmoni netsL When; they* are ften
fwknming near the furface of the-.watef the -ftfharmen often give
them a blow on the neck with their oar, andifordake them*; but
they are only ufed as a bait for other Filh,. particularly thé
Turbot, who is very eager after them.
Rokke, Rokke-filfc, the Thornback, Raia Clavata,- in 'Nbneay
called Skate. JTis a Sea-filh.of an extraordinary fhape, and noé
Unknown in Denmark, tho’ it feems to differ a little - from
ours * ; for there are various forts, all which, or moft of^thpm,
are defcribed by Willoughby, Lib. iii c.wv{S-^p hS'r hL fequ.
The Norvègian Skate in bodyd^dike a large Flounder,. qm4te
flat, with a fliarp head : it is white ;under the j belly, vahd
of a darkifli brown on the back ;\arrd.hasl prickles -and final!
circles on the fkin. There are federal broad fins proje&ing out
rarbach fide of this Filh y flke wingsf forger than its whole hbdyi
But what is moft remarkaWe, is a mundifh; tail,' of about two
foot long, full of angular knobs.’ The nteutfoi* not placedy as
in other Fifties, m the head, but underneath, fomething like that
of the Shark; befides, it has this in common with that Filh,
namely, ihst^k has’ no bones, but is ‘of the baiiilaginousikthd.-
It has pretty large eggs, froni which it* young are produced at
a proper time.- The liver is large and fat, and yields*a good
deal of train oil, which is the chief thing the filhermen catch it
for: it is feldom eaten here, tho’ feme people firft dry, and then
export them. They- are generally caught with a hook and
line.
m m fëism alias, funt laves, aliae afper®. alia -flellat®* all®'non'AfperarPk
aliae rouim tales. _ Magnitude intec- fe differ Lint. ij Biqiibitales a-Iiquando
vrdit-Salvianus. Galp. Schott. Phyf. cpnoik' Xih. x. cj 49. .
S E Q T.
: N A d TU R A L ; H IS T O R YHof N O RW A Y . i +3
jy!. “
fjfeSaelhuttd. See.Kohhe. 1 sqL j ‘
; TherSayy which iskeln Denmark call; G^fe^dis yeacy like the» s.ey.
L y f hefore.defcribed | .«he Lead. 2s rather r^dre^pointed,: and the
htodjr;' finsjjkrfil; tandL’tk- alfc -dieted, ■ •with fine fcales. ;The! flefh
k caarfetthan ithe.'Cbd’s, and, is, nOt:eate.n, iftW.epf by,
and fervantk. Whife they* ^re young'they .arei.called Mort, and
are feen playing about the water, ini p^digioiisv^uniBetsI .where
thejs.vferye for the food andinomfjbmerLt of other .Falk-'When,
they are fomewhat alder‘they lace called ;P&le, .and are tolerably
well tailed: 1 asi they .grow iftilhllargeac we give-! them‘ the name
of Sey-Ofs*; and daftlyy-.when* they armfaM grown w^scalLtheiw
Summer^Seytt .Them',»tbdy namein with'the tSfodmec ;kfeEring£y
and .pdtfueithem. along with the Whale,' land mther rFillfof preyv\
T;hefe iaft have] L o t ..a» greater enemy» andlperfecprorithan: the
Siimmer-Sey. They alfoiate harralTed and piirfuedhythe Whtle ;
but when he cannot get a&y farther .becaufe <bf <, the lhallawsy
thefe frhaller ;devourets eontinue- the; purfult, and . drive the.
Herrings; befate them .into.'thes fcf^ksf and.ihfel^h^d with
foeh violehek-'ltfeafc 'they frequently rhn * ihenilelvS^ alhore: 'In
SuhdmberttMeylar& ofted takjep^up^ id pails as ‘ faftlast.’the ^peop’l^
can part them in f and there: areepken fuoh fboals of. thesm that
they ini^dnnnpde' due j another, f; Whit 1 ist JmiMft? .extraordinary; mj.
that fametkmxs tbis. fhoai is Teen], in the. middfc p f :the: iulater^ |
crowded fffl ,Scfe:te§ethBqr:"khat tEfeyi’Mti osB: Another’ah8S ;& h
l^rface ^ and- onerman.- may*, in-the fpace of an hour, .tlfeq up
60 or:yo 'ofithem with a pole, to the. end -of -which:’a .ftrong.
fifhihg>E©Qk: is faftenecfe'c 1 They catch them alfo? with angling^’
rads anddines, omul fletK^vanAhKs^laft-ijrk^irth^sij^ijii^iihe»
take"aoo casfesi orfhthem ati:a draughtf-iiiisil e-i
, 'The Siik,( the Alhuli iiobtlrs', isiaifinnaU' frelh-’^ater Filh, wdlsiiii. :
tafted .it is (gkierally found
reckoned „.a better Fftli 3 but thetd is no great1 refemblincb
between theffe, tho’ yh®y ufually breed in the fanieia'ke'S. ’ ’
The §ihh the Herring-, Harehgd'$,:'a FilH every where krwwn, si{4:. '
and from ovft fta,s lent almoft all -.oyer. .Europe : if, Wot^d therefore
be fuperfluqus - to detain the reader with a particufor defeiptid®
of it \ a very foil bhe^majf be ^ead id Jfchofiveldii Ichtyolog. ISfeuil'
crantzii, Qpuft. de Haraage,. &: Willoughby’s Hift. Fife, r This
laft author calls the Hemhg' Rek Pifei’uini flic King of Fifties ;
which appellation upay he tak^n in this fedj^f jviz.!' that 'df all
Filh there is none lo profitable to us Europeans', for in the Nether-
‘lands'