158 COLUBRID.E 



mordacissimum animal." Dr. Gadow relates his 

 experience with aggressive specimens which in- 

 habited a swamp with a little stream to the north 

 of Oporto, close to the coast. To his utter surprise, 

 some of them actually made for him, swimming 

 along rapidly with the head erect, about 6 inches 

 above the water, and darting forwards with widely 

 opened jaws ; but they did not bite. According to 

 Professor Kathariner, this snake when caught has 

 been observed to sham death, lying rigid and motion- 

 less, with open gape. Some specimens do well in 

 captivity, and are known to have lived for many 

 years ; others refuse all food and die of starvation. 

 After a time they become tolerably tame, and cease 

 to produce the offensive odour when handled. 



The food consists of frogs and toads — the latter 

 being preferred notwithstanding their poisonous 

 secretion, which protects them from the attacks of 

 most animals — occasionally of newts, seldom of fish ; 

 these snakes are reported to have a predilection for 

 tree-frogs, and to feed occasionally on mice and birds, 

 but most observers agree that they will not take 

 anything higher in the zoological scale than frogs. 

 The prey is swallowed alive, and, if not very large, 

 four or five frogs or toads are often taken in succes- 

 sion ; a case is known of a snake having swallowed 

 twenty very small frogs at one meal. The young 

 feed on worms and batrachian larvae, in addition 

 to very small frogs and toads. 



