THE COLOURS. 83 



of the vast ocean. The inhabitants of the desert, as the 

 Eryx, the Egyptian Viper, &c., are scarcely distinguishable 

 from the sand, so uniformly spread over those dismal 

 wastes ; other snakes, the B^irrowers, are recognisable by 

 their beautiful shining, strongly irridescent colours, among 

 which red is predominant on the lower parts. A multi- 

 tude of other Ophidians present colours which sometimes 

 imitate the dusky brown of a boggy soil, marshy, or shaded 

 by thick forests, sometimes the green of herbs, sometimes 

 the diversified tints of places clothed with mosses and 

 lichens ; and some have their livery adorned with the 

 most brilliant hues, in rivalry of the splendours of the 

 flowers of a tropical vegetation. The species included in 

 this latter category are chiefly found among terrestrial 

 snakes, and among those that climb. Thus, we might in- 

 stance, as the most beautiful Ophidians, the species whose 

 bodies are surrounded with alternate bands of vermilion 

 and black, white or yellow ; such are the Coronella ve- 

 nustissima and C. coccinea, the Lycodon formosus, many 

 snakes of the genera Tortrix and Heterodon, most of the 

 Elaps, the Naja lubrica, the Dendrophis ornata, and the 

 Dipsas macrorhina. Other Dendrophis, many Dryiophis, 

 certain Dipsas, &c., are equally remarkable for the splen- 

 dour and diversity of tints which adorn their livery. 



The distribution of the colours is infinitely varied in ser- 

 pents ; some have the body longitudinally striped or rayed ; 

 others are surrounded by transverse bands ; sometimes they 

 are spotted, at other times sprinkled over with dots or 

 marblings ; sometimes there is a clear ground, which is re- 

 lieved by markings of every sort, at other times dark hues 

 are the prevalent colours, so that the ground colour is in- 

 distinctly visible ; hence the great difficulty of describing 

 the infinite shades of colour in the livery of serpents. This 

 difficulty is augmented by the changes which the tints un- 

 dergo from age in the different stages of life, &c. ; they are 

 still more frequently different in the two sexes, and the ac- 

 cidental varieties observed in this respect are very nume- 

 rous. The vivacity of the tints undergoes continual meta- 

 morphoses from the casting of the skin. It is a general 



