178 ON THE PHYSIOGNOMY OF SERPENTS. 



II.-VENOMOUS SERPENTS 



Form the second gi*and division of Ophidians. They are 

 all provided with a murderous tooth or fang, fixed on the 

 maxillary bone ; of which the size is so reduced, that it 

 rarely carries any other tooth than the fangs. This divi- 

 sion naturally arranges itself into three grou])s or Families. 

 Colubriform Venomous Serpents form the first of these, 

 including all those venomous Ophidians that by their 

 form approach the non- venomous terrestrial serpents, to 

 which they have usually a very strikhig resemblance, and 

 are often distinguishable from them by no external sign, 

 except the thickness of their muzzle. They have the 

 trunk elongated, the tail short, massive, and conical, the 

 eyes a little voluminous, and the pupil orbicular, the nos- 

 trils open and lateral. Their scales are large, lozenge- 

 shaped, and almost always smooth. Their head is invested 

 with plates like those of the genus Coluber; the rostral is 

 sufficiently developed, while the frenal is ordinarily want- 

 ing. The venomous apparatus is usually little developed ; 

 the maxillary bone is long, and often armed with teeth 

 placed behind the fangs, which last are short but strong, 

 and provided with a groove uniting the orifices ; the lower 

 jaw, with its suspensory pieces, is little developed. These 

 Ophidians inhabit the hot countries of both worlds ; they 

 are not found in Europe, and only form three genera. 



E LAP s. 



This genus has a cylindrical trunk, very slender, and of 

 equal thickness throughout, surrounded usually with 15 

 rows of broad and smooth scales ; the head elongated, and 

 little distinct from the trunk; tints, for the most part, 

 vivid and beautiful. They frequent wooded places, or 

 coverts of grass, and seem to shun arid soils. They inha- 



