72 ArSTEALIAN SNAKES. 



The species is, no doubt, highly venomous, but not having received 

 living examples no experiments could be made. In this as in other very- 

 dangerous snakes, a temporal shield is inserted betweeen the two last upper 

 labials ; this shield and a scale at the end of the line of mouth have been 

 counted as labial shields in the original description, but they are not, and 

 six labials above and below is the correct number. 



PETEOD'Z'iyEOIT, Krefi. 

 Petrodymon, Krefft, Transactions of the Philosopliical Societi/ of N. S. Wales for 186.5. 



Body rather elongate, rounded ; head depressed, flat, not very 

 distinct from neck ; eye small, pupil elliptical ; subcaudals in two series ; 

 tail short, distinct from trunk, ending in a conical spine or nail. 



E,ED-BELLiED Snake. Fetrodymon cucullatum. 



(Plate VI, figs. 10 and 10a.) 

 Diemansia cucullata, GuntJier, Ann. and May. iV. Hist., Ser. 3, vol. 9, p. 129. 

 Petrodymon cucullatum, KreJ^, Transact, of the Phil. Soc. of N. S. Wales, for 1S6.5. 



Scales in 15 rows. 

 Abdominal plates, 187. 

 Two anal plates. 

 Subcaudal plates, 41/41. 

 Total length, 19 inches. 

 Head, f inch. 

 Tail, 2^ inches. 



Purplish brown above, with a series of darker longitudinal lines 

 along the upper part of the body, leaving a light elongate mark in the 

 middle of each scale ; beneath yellow, bright red in adult specimens, each 

 ventral plate clouded on the upper edge Avith purplish browTi much inter, 

 rupted on the posterior part of the body. Divisional line of subcaudal plates 

 marked in a similar manner, leaving the outer edges of the plates yellowish. 

 Upper part of head purphsh brown as far as the middle of posterior frontals, 

 covering the vertical part of superciliaries, and reaching beyond the 

 occipitals ; this elliptical spot is joined to the back by a narrow band of 

 the same color running along the median line of the neck. A light 

 greyish band encircles the dark brown mark, divided by the narrow line 



