From what has been said as to the structure of the spiral valve in the different groups of Fishes, it may be concluded that the valve most nearly retains its primitive condition in the Cyclostomata; attains its maximum development in the Elasmobranchs, especially in the Notidanidae, and shows no indication of degeneration in the Dipnoi. In the Holocephali and the lower Teleostomi, on the other hand, the valve exhibits various stages of retrogressive modification, and in the Teleosts is either absent altogether or persists only as a vestigial structure in a very few species. From a physiological point of view the object of the spiral valve is to increase the absorptive inner surface of the intestine,[257] but, from what has been said as to the structural variability of the valve, it is obvious that its efficacy from a functional standpoint must be equally variable. The value of the valve as an absorptive mechanism necessarily depends on the area of absorption-surface which it provides, as well as on the degree of resistance which it offers to the passage of food material along the cavity of the intestine. These factors will in turn depend on the number of coils, on the width of the valve, and on the extent to which its free margin is deflected in forming the series of cones, but these again are precisely the structural features which are most liable to variation. The total absorption area in the four types of valve characteristic of the genus _Raia_ has been calculated, and may be expressed in square centimetres as follows:—A, 136.64; B, 143.82; C, 254.3; and D, 276.7.[258] Hence as regards mere absorption area a spiral valve of the type D has twice the extent of a valve of the type A, and if, in addition, account be taken of the retardation of the food due to the increased obstruction offered by the columella and cones in D, it is clear that the {270}difference in physiological value between the two types must be far more considerable than is indicated by a comparison of their relative superficial areas alone.