CHANNEL PROVINCE. 259 



heaps of dead leaves and other vegetable refuse. It 

 appears to possess an instinctive knowledge of these 

 heaps, as at a distance of two or three fields I have 

 seen them emerging from the woods and making their 

 way in a direct line for them. The largest ring snake 

 I ever met with myself was on Bloxworth Heath, and 

 it measured exactly 4 feet 2 inches in length. I have 

 a variety found on Bloxworth Heath whieh I imagine 

 to be unique. It is of a uniform pale-whitish colour, 

 with a well-defined longitudinal central dorsal pale 

 yellow- brown band. No trace of the characteristic 

 yellow ring at the back of the head was visible. 



" Smooth snake. — This snake was first discovered in 

 England by the late Mr Frederick Bond and myself, 

 between Tlingwood and Wimborne, in 1853. It was 

 only recorded as British in 1859. It is not infrequent 

 on the Dorsetshire and Hampshire heaths, where it is 

 often mistaken for the adder, and surfers accordingly. 

 It is of a browner hue than the common ring snake, 

 and so far bears a superficial resemblance to the adder, 

 but lacks the dark zigzag line of the latter, and is of 

 a more slender form. Its length is from 18 to 25 

 inches. 



" Adder. — It is certainly not abundant, though 

 frequent in the Bloxworth district, and is found more 

 in the woodlands bordering the heaths than on the 

 heaths themselves. Its length is from 18 to 24 

 inches." — 'Reptiles of Dorset,' by Rev. 0. P. Cam- 

 bridge, M.A., F.R.S. 



