Two Fish

This stunning image of the Cugupuguacu fish is taken from The Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands (1731-1747) by famed naturalist Mark Catesby. He was one of several 18th-century explorers who ventured to remote areas of the world to document regional flora and fauna. A copy of the 1771 edition of the two-volume work is in the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation collection. Find out more about Colonial Williamsburg here. Catesby wrote, "They are esteemed a good Fish, and are plentiful in the shallow Seas of the Bahama Islands."