CALAMARIA. 195 



The Indian species belong to the following genera : — 



* Subcaudals bifid. 



t Only one pair offrontals. 



Fo\ir or five upper labial shields Calamaria, p. 195. 



Eight upper labial shields Macrocalamus, p. 198. 



tt Tivo pairs offrontals. 



Loreal none, replaced by the posterior frontal ; a prseoeidar . . . Oxy calamus, p. 199. 



Loreal and prseocular united into one elongate shield Geophis, p. 200. 



** Subcaudals entire. 



Scales smooth Aspidura, p. 202. 



Scales keeled Haplocercus, p. 204. 



CALAMARIA, Boie. 



Body cylindrical, stout or slender ; head short, slightly depressed, not 

 distinct from neck ; eye of moderate size, with round pupil ; tail short. 

 Only one pair of frontals ; nasal simple, small ; loreal none, united with the 

 frontal ; one anterior ocular (sometimes absent) and one posterior ; four or 

 five labials. Scales smooth, rounded, polished, in thirteen series ; anal 

 entire ; subcaudals two-rowed. Teeth equal in size and structure. 



The snakes of this genus are peculiar to the East Indian archipelago, where they are 

 represented by numerous species, a few only being found in the neighbouring parts of the 

 continent (Malayan peninsula, Siam) ; they are entirely absent in the peninsula of India and 

 in Ceylon. They are all ground snakes, and are very small, not much exceeding 12-15 inches 

 in length, of diurnal habits, feeding on small invertebrates, and frequently falling a prey to 

 more powerful snakes, particularly to the Elapes. They much resemble one another in 

 every part of their organization : the head-shields are reduced in number ; the rostral is low ; 

 the frontals large, always replacing the loreal, and sometimes even suppressing the prse- 

 ocular, forming a portion of the orbit ; vertical large, supraorbital small ; the occipital forms 

 a suture with the last labial, a single temporal fitting-in in the notch between these two 

 shields. Four or five labials, the hinder of which is the largest; if there are four, the 

 second is larger than the first and third ; two labials enter the orbit. Mental shield much 

 broader than long ; five pairs of lower labials, the first pair forming a suture behind the 

 mental shield in some species, whilst in others the mental is in immediate contact with the 

 anterior chin-shields. Two pairs of chin-shields, the anterior of which is larger than the 

 posterior ; sometimes a small azygos shield is intercalated between the posterior chin-shields, 

 separating them entirely from each other, — a character which is also used for the distinction 

 of the species. 



2 c2 



