54 THE CHALCID^E. 



title of Ophisaurus is of Greek origin, signifying Snake-lizard, and is given to the reptile on 

 account of its serpentine aspect. The reader may remember that on page 52 there is an 

 account of the saurophis, a name which is exactly the same as that of the present species, 

 except that the one is called the lizard-snake and the other the snake-lizard, a distinction 

 vhich, in the present case, is without a difference, so that the two reptiles might exchange 

 titles and yet be appropriately named. 



The Glass Snake is indeed so singularly like a serpent that it can only be distinguished 

 from those reptiles by certain anatomical marks, such as the presence of eyelids, \vhich are 

 wanting in the true serpents, the tongue not sheathed at the base, and the solid jaw-bones, 

 which in the serpents are so loosely put together that the parts become widely separated when 

 the mouth of the creature is dilated in the act of swallowing its prey. 



The Glass Snake is one of the earliest of the reptile tribe to make its appearance in the 

 spring, shaking off its lethargy and coming out of its home to bask in the sunbeams and look 

 after the early insects, long before the true snakes show themsel ves. It is generally found in 

 spots where vegetation is abundant, probably because in such localities it finds a plentiful 

 supply of the insects, small reptiles, and other creatures on which it feeds. 



It is fond of frequenting the plantations of sweet potato (Convolvulus batatas), and during 

 harvest-time is often dug up together with that vegetable. The home of this reptile is made in 

 some very dry locality, and it generally chooses some spot where it can be sheltered by the roots 

 of an old tree, or a crevice in a convenient bank. It moves with tolerable rapidity, and its 

 pursuer must exercise considerable quickness before he can secure it. 



To catch a perfect specimen of the Glass Snake is a very difficult business, for when 

 alarmed, it has a remarkable habit of contracting the muscles of its tail with such exceeding 

 force that the member snaps off from the body at a slight touch, and sometimes will break 

 into two or more pieces if struck slightly with a switch, thus earning for itself the appropriate 

 title of Glass Snake. The common blind-worm, which will be described in a future page, pos- 

 sesses a similar capacity, and often uses it in a rather perplexing fashion. Catesby remarks 

 that this separation of the tail into fragments is caused by the construction of the joints, "the 

 muscles being articulated in a singular manner quite through the vertebrae." The tail is more 

 than twice the length of the body, from which it can only be distinguished by a rather close 

 inspection. 



The head of the Glass Snake is small in proportion to the body, rather pyramidal in 

 shape. Along each side of the body runs a rather deep double groove. The coloring of this 

 creature is extremely variable, but is generally as follows : The head is mottled above and at 

 the sides with black and green, and the jaws are edged with yellow. The upper part of the 

 body is marked with multitudinous lines of black, green, and yellow, and the abdomen is 

 bright yellow along its length. In the tail there are about one hundred and forty rings of 

 scales. Sometimes the upper surface is black on the sides and neck, and brown on the back, 

 the head being marbled with yellow and black ; another variety is chestnut above, with white 

 spots edged with black, and the under parts pale orange ; while a third variety is gray mottled 

 with black. The total length of this reptile is from two to three feet. 



The Glass Snakes are represented in North America by the Opheosaurus ventralis. It is 

 seemingly a serpent, having no external limbs. The tail is very brittle, and the animal has 

 from that fact been regarded as so brittle that a blow will fracture the body. The truth 

 is, there are thin transverse sepli between the vertebse, and this is the point where separation 

 takes place so readily. Its range is from Tennessee southward from Kansas. 



FOUR small families now follow, containing but very few individuals. The first of these is 

 called the CHALCID^;. These reptiles have long cylindrical bodies, with a slight granular 

 groove on the front of each side, and four very short rudimentary limbs. The typical species 

 of this family is the CHALCIS (Chalets flavescens}, a native of tropical America, Guiana, and 

 the neighboring parts. The fore-feet have three toes, but the hind-feet are undivided, so as to 

 form a single toe. The scales are squared, and arranged in twenty longitudinal series on the 

 back, and six series on the abdomen. 



