DISTRIBUTION OF OnilDIANS, 217 



the Langalia, an anomalous and very curious species of 

 Diyiopliis, the Ilerpetodryas Goudotii, and H. rhodogas- 

 ter, the Dipsas Gainiardi ; all peculiar to Madagascar. 

 The Mascarine Isles produce a very handsome Coluber, 

 C. miniatus, and a small Boa of a gracile form, and slender 

 tail (Boa Dussumieri). Only a single serpent of the genus 

 Psammophis is known in the Seychelles. 



If we except the two Indian peninsular, Asia is not very 

 abundant in reptiles. This observation would appear 

 correct, although some other parts of Asia have not been 

 so often explored as those already named. This is readily 

 explicable by the position of Asia, a large portion of 

 which is situate in the temperate and frigid zones, re- 

 gions little favourable to the multiplication of reptiles. 

 Northern Asia, or rather Siberia, produces a great many 

 animals that occur also in Europe ; and the same holds 

 good with serpents."'"" A curious Ophidian, peculiar to 

 the southern parts of Siberia, is the Trigonocephalus 

 halys, intermediate in structure between the Vipers of 

 Europe, and the Trigonocephali with plates covering the 

 head. The deserts south of the Caspian Sea, which are 

 prolonged to the borders of Hindustan, on the one hand, 

 and, on the other, stretch by Iran to Arabia and Syria, 

 to join those of Africa, produce a small ninnber of rep- 

 tiles, which equally inhabit the similar deserts of the lat- 

 ter continent. There have been observed the ]Monitor 

 exanthematicus, the Stelliones, the Agama of the desert 

 (Lacerta aurita, Pallas), the Vipera ecliis, the Psammopliis 

 lacertina, and the Eryx, which extends to Siberia, ])ut 

 forms in India one or more local varieties or distinct 

 races. We are in absolute ignorance with regard to the 

 reptiles of the rest of Central Asia ; but the known ani- 

 mals of China, at least those of the neighbourhood of 

 Canton, often present a strong analogy to the productions 

 of the Islands of the Great Indian Archipelago. Before 



* Most travellers agree that our Tropidonoti, our Viper, our Lizards, 

 &c., are found in Siberia ; but not admitting facts into my work that are 

 not founded on dissections of the subjects themselves, or on good figures 

 of tlie animals, I have but rarely availed myself of the remarks of tra- 

 vellers. 



T 



