CHAP. 76.—FISHES THE BELLY OF WHICH OPENS IN SPAWNING, AND THEN CLOSES AGAIN.
The sea-needle,[1] or the belone, is the only fish in which the
multitude of its eggs, in spawning, causes the belly to open
asunder; but immediately after it has brought forth, the wound
heals again: a thing which, it is said, is the case with the
blind-worm as well. The sea-mouse[2] digs a hole in the earth,
deposits its eggs there, and then covers them up. On the
thirtieth day it opens the hole, and leads its young to the
water.
1. The Syngnathus acus of Linnæus. This fish, Cuvier says, and in
general all of the same genus, has a channel situate under the tail, which
is opened by two moveable valves. In this they deposit their eggs at the
moment of excluding them. After this, the valves open, to give a passage
to the eggs, or the young enclosed in them. This circumstance, he says,
gave rise to the notion mentioned in the text.
2. Mentioned in c. 35 of the present Book. Cuvier says that the sea tortoises, or turtles, to which no doubt this animal belonged, do deposit
their eggs much in the way here mentioned.