Buffon's Natural History. Volume 09 (of 10): Containing a Theory of the Earth, a General History of Man, of the Brute Creation, and of Vegetables, Minerals, &c. &cBuffon, Georges Louis Leclerc, comte de
History
Buffon's Natural History. Volume 09 (of 10): Containing a Theory of the Earth, a General History of Man, of the Brute Creation, and of Vegetables, Minerals, &c. &c
Buffon, Georges Louis Leclerc, comte de
Natural history
By this description we find that the manati of Senegal does not differ
in any particular from that of Cayenne; and from a comparison made of
the head of the Senegal manati with that of a foetus of the Cayenne
lamantin by M. Daubenton, he presumes that they are of the same
species. The testimony of travellers also agrees with our opinion;
Dampier in particular speaks positively, and his observations deserve
a place in our history. "It is not only in Blewfield river, which
springs between the rivers Nicaraga and Veraga, that I have seen the
manati: I have also seen them in the Bay of Campeachy, on the coast of
Bocca del Drago, and Bocca del Toro, in the river of Darien, and in
the small southern islands of Cuba: I have heard it said that there
are a few found on the north of Jamaica, and many in Surinam river,
which is a very low country. I have likewise seen them at Mindanea,
one of the Philippine islands, and on the coast of New Holland. This
animal is fond of brackish water, therefore he most commonly inhabits
those rivers which border on the sea. This is possibly the reason why
we never meet with any in the South Seas, where the coast is generally
high, and the water very deep near land, except in the Bay of Panama;
but even there the manati is not to be met with; but the West-Indies
being, as it were, a great bay composed of a number of small ones, are
generally low land and shallow water, and consequently afford a food
which is agreeable to the manati. They are sometimes seen in salt
water, sometimes in fresh, but seldom very far from shore. Those which
inhabit the sea, and places where there are no rivers that they can
enter, come to the mouth of the nearest fresh-water rivers which they
find, once or twice in twenty-four hours. They feed on a narrow herbage
which grows on the sides of the shores, especially in places where the
tides or currents are not very strong. They never go on shore, but
always keep in a depth of water where they can swim. Their flesh is
sweet, and very good food; their skin is also of great utility. The
manati and the tortoise are commonly found in the same parts of the
world, and feed on the same herbage."[K]
[Footnote K: A great number of manatis are to be found along the low
and marshy coasts, and in the vast lakes of Moyacaré, the most southern
part of French Guiana, above the Oyapoc. Small vessels from Cayenne go
to the fishery of these animals, and bring their flesh salted, a gross
aliment which is kept for the negroes. This fishery, which might become
an object of important commerce, should be encouraged; it would require
a small establishment upon the coast, and would facilitate the means of
acquiring some knowledge of a country now unknown, and which, at the
same time that it opened new sources of commerce, would prove also an
inexhaustible mine of wealth to Natural History.]
THE NOMENCLATURE OF APES.
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