XENOPELTID.E. 



275 



Plectrurus scabricauda, Theob. Cat. p. 136. 



Teretrurus sanguineus, Beddome, A. M. N. H. (5) xvii, 1880, p. 28. 



Teretrurus travancoricus, Beddome, 1. c. p. 29. 



Snout obtuse ; rostral small, just visible from above ; frontal 

 longer than broad ; supraocular not or scarcely larger than the 

 eye, as long as the prsef rentals or shorter ; temporal about 

 half the length of the parietals. Diameter of body 22 to 28 times 

 in the total length. 15 scales round the middle of the body, 17 

 behind the head. Ventrals nearly twice as broad as the contiguous 

 scales, 120-150; subcaudals 5-9. Caudal scales smooth or faintly 

 keeled in the female ; all the caudals and the last ventrals more or 

 less distinctly pluricarinate in the males ; tail ending in a simple, 

 compressed point. Brown or purplish red above ; belly red, uni- 

 form or more or less blotched with black. 



Total length 9 inches. 



Hob. Wynaad, Anaimalais, Travancore, 3000-4700 feet. 



Family VI. XENOPELTIDJS. 



Cranial bones solidly united ; trauspalatine present ; pterygoid 

 extending to quadrate; supratemporal present, suspending quadrate; 

 prsefrontals forming a suture with nasals. Mandible without 

 coronoid bone. Teeth in jaws, palate, and praemaxillary. 



A single genus. 



1m 



Fig. 84. Upper view of skull of Xenopeltis unicolor. 



ttng. Angular. 

 ar. Articular. 

 bo. Basioccipital. 



d. Dentary. 

 eo. Exoccipital. 



/'. Frontal. 



m. Maxillary. 



n. Nasal. 



p. Parietal. 

 pm. Prajmaxillary. 

 prf. Praafrontal. 

 pro. Prootic. 



q. Quadrate. 

 so. Supraoccipital. 

 st. Supratemporal 

 tp. Transpalatine. 



T2 



