61 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, 1S90. 



of a rupee, and perhaps from one-eighth to one-fourth inch high, are 

 very pretty objects, and from their bright colour easily catch the 



eye. 



Cremastogaster Rothneyi, Mayr. 



This pretty little species, which was described from specimens 

 taken in the Eden Gardens, Calcutta, also occurs in Barrackpore Park, 

 but does not appear to be generally common in Bengal ; it frequents 

 the trunks of trees, but I never succeeded in finding the nest. 



The Mushroom Ant. 



There is a species, one of the Poneridce, the males of which come 

 in numbers to light, and settle on the white cloth at dinner-time, 

 or fly about the lamps ; it is common from the beginning of the hot 

 weather in March to the beginning of the cold season in November, 

 but I have never been able to find either the workers or females to 

 which it belongs, — that is knowingly. From the very strong smell 

 which it has when handled, and which exactly resembles mushrooms, 

 I have given it the above MS. name. 



A LIST OF THE VENOMOUS SNAKES OF NORTH 



KANARA; WITH REMARKS AS TO THE 



IMPERFECTIONS OF EXISTING RECORDS OF THE 



DISTRIBUTION OF SNAKES, AND FACTS AND 



STATISTICS SHOWING THE INFLUENCE OF 



ECHIS CARINATA ON THE DEATH-RATE 



OF THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY. 



By Mr. G. W. Vidal, C.S. 



{Read at the Society's Meeting on 9th January 1890.) 

 The recent contribution to the Society's Museum of a specimen 

 of Trimeresurus trigonocephalies from North Kanara adds another 

 species to the comparatively long list of venomous land snakes, 

 of whose occurrence in that district there is already an authentic 

 record. 



