The Natural Hiftory of JAMAICA. ni 
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It_is reckon’d very poifonous in the Bite, and I.was told one -had. 
his Thigh bit by this Creature and dy’d the next Day. It i 7 
bious, and lives both in Water- and y Ps ee i ay t is amphi 
It flyes from a Man, but, loves to feed on the Remainder of his 
Vidtuals. : | . 
It feeds commonly on the fmalleft fort.of Sea Crabs: 
Cen 1h: 
- OF Serpents. | 
i. Serpens wiajor fubflavuss T. ab. 274; | 
The yell, Saker, 
HIS is in Length about feven og eight: Feet, its Head vis. fot 
very large, having Noftrils and Phangs tho’ mor fong, the Neck is 
fmall, being near two Inches about, rather, lefs then, his Body, which 
growes bigger, till ic be as big as ones Wrift, and continues fo larg 
to the Azus, whence it diminifhes by Degrees to the Tail; its Head 
is of a dark brown Colour, and the Scales,.a]l aver the. Body até. of 
a dirk Brown, with fome yellow Streaks here and there, the Belly. 
is all yellow, and coyer’d with larger and greater Scales than the Back. 
In the infide I found a great deal of Fat in Place of the Omentum, 
the Aperture of the Mandibles were large, the Ocfophagus pretty wide, 
the Stomach very full of large Folds, and like that of a carnivorous 
Creature, the Inteftine was one ftrait Du@ without Circumvolution 
down to the Asus, the Excrement foft and whitifh like that of a 
Bird. There lay pretty low in the Abdomen, a long {mall Liver co- 
lour’d Body, made up of feveral {mall Lobes laid one on another, which I 
took to be the Reins or Kidneys, it lay on the right Side, and above 
it a much longer Mafs of the fame Colour, but of an undivided Sub- 
{tance which was the Liver, a pretty Way under which was the Gall 
Bladder, very great, round and full of a greenifh Gall, the Heart was 
beating an Hour after the Head was off, and it would turn and twift 
its Body ftrangely in its DiffeGion, for a long time after the Bowels 
were out: The Lungs are very Membranaceous, being nothing but 
Blood Veffels and Air Bladders. 
It is for the moft part tobe found in the Woody Mountains, quoil’d 
up in the Paths as Ropes in a Ship. 
They are not hurtful, unlefs irritated; they will not bite, except 
when they have their young near them for their Detence. ‘lhe 
bitings very rarely prove mortal, although fometimes the Wounds are 
very much fwell’d and inflam’d, prove tedious in curing, and are 
much worfe than thofe of the black Snake. 
They feed on Birds, Rats, ec. which they fwallow whole, and there- 
fore Nature has given them fuch a folded or rugous inward Tunicle 
of the Stomach, that it may extend and receive things of large Di- 
menfions. Many of them have been kill’d with Thirteen or Fourteen 
Rats in their Bellies. 
An Indian brought this figur’d here and feveral others to me, he 
us’d to take them behind by their Necks, fo that they could not bite 
him; © 
