THE FL'IXCII'AI. SPECIES OE POISONOUS SNAKES 



101 



Vn'EKiD-E, on the other hand, are extremel}' nmnerous, and 

 belong exclusively to the subfamily Crotalin^<: ; there are no 



VlPEEIN^. 



I.— COLUBEID.E. 



(a) Elaps. 



(Fig. 65.) 



The characters of this genus are : Maxillary bones very short, 

 extending beyond the palatines, and bearing a pair of large poison- 



FiG. 65. — Skull of Elaps marcgravii. (After G. A. Boulenger, oj). cit.) 



fangs ; pterygoid teeth few or absent ; mandibular teeth all of 

 equal length. Xo postfrontal bones ; prsefrontals meeting, or 

 narrowly separated on the median line. Head small, not distinct 



