NOTES ON SNAKES COLLECTED IN FYZABAD. 



127 



:md subsequently disgorged 1 am told. The incensed household agreed 

 to sit up on the night of the 6th and had a fish hook baited with a 

 frog to tempt it. About o a.m. the cobra emerged, tackled and 

 swallowed the frog to the great satisfaction of the revenge- seeking 

 inmates of the house who promptly despatched it. When brought 

 to me, and cut open, sure enough a large frog was in the stomach 

 still attached to a fish hook that would have held a mugger, and the 

 line was issuing from the snake's mouth. 



Breeding. — I obtained no gravid females, but young were hatching 

 in July. 



Food. — Rats were frequently taken, but toads and frogs also. 



Colour. — The most striking point of interest to me was the variation 

 exhibited by the specimens in colour and especially in hood markings. 

 Most of the specimens I placed in Mr. Eouleuger's Category " A a " 

 (Catalogue, 1S9G, Vol. Ill, p. 381). It will be seen, however, that 

 many of the specimens were so peculiarly marked that the scheme laid 

 down in that authority's work made it impossible to know with which 

 to include them. 



Every amateur photographer of many in cantonments had his 

 camera out of order whenever I got a specimen I wanted to take 

 a faithful record of. I have, however, roughly sketched the hood marks 

 of many as they came in, and these I hope will be of some use in 

 showing their great variation. 



In addition I give other details in tabular form of the specimens. 



Date. 



Remarks. 



1905. 



Hood marks as in fig. 10. 



Tail docked. A large 

 rat in stomach. Hood 

 marks as in fig. 5. 



Lower temporal touches 

 5th. 6th and 7th su- 

 pralabials. 



