COUNTY AND DISTRICT DISTRIBUTION. 239 



In arranging the information I have grouped the 

 counties according to the sheet recently issued (pre- 

 pared by Alex. Somerville, F.L.S.), and called " The 

 County and Vice-County Divisions of the British 

 Isles," for biological purposes. Some districts have 

 supplied much fuller information than others, for the 

 simple reason that where snakes are not, there is 

 nothing more to say. 



At first sight there would appear to be some direct 

 contradictions in the records of some counties, but on 

 closer examination it will be found that where two 

 observers disagree in their statements they refer to 

 different localities, though it may be the same county. 

 This very local distribution is a striking feature 

 in British serpents, and is to be noticed in many 

 counties. People who live on different sides of the 

 same range of mountains, though perhaps in the same 

 county, may make directly opposite statements as to 

 which serpent is the most common, and both are prob- 

 ably right. Adders particularly keep to very much 

 the same place, if the process of civilisation around 

 them is fairly stationary ; and there are places where 

 adders abound, the persons living a few miles off 

 being quite unaware of their existence, because the 

 reptiles stop in the same place. The ring snake is 

 not quite so local in its habit, and wanders farther 

 atield. These facts should be borne in mind in com- 

 paring the statements made by various correspon- 

 dents. Not quite so easy of explanation is the great 



