144: ON THE PIIYSIOGNOJJY OP SERPENTS. 



7. Coluber Corais, the largest known of this genus, 

 attains the length of 8 feet, and the thickness of a child's 

 arm ; comes from Surinam. Its form is very robust, its 

 head powerful, its muzzle thick. Its physiognomy re- 

 sem])les the genus Naja ; 17 rows of large scales ; colour 

 a reddish-brown, verging on a grey-purple ; the young 

 have transverse bands of a dark colour on the sides ; be- 

 low, yellowish-white. S. 202 + 75. 



8. Coluber Melanurus has the head massive, and de- 

 pressed, the muzzle oljtuse ; 19 rows of scales, strongly 

 carinated ; the labial plates are narrow ; the trunk is com- 

 pressed, and the abdomen very angular. S. 218 + 92. 

 Remarkable for the changes of colour it undergoes with its 

 age ; the young are of a fine shining black, with a dorsal 

 rav of citron-yellow ; sides ornamented with a series of 

 ocellated spots, with white centres ; cheeks pure white. In 

 the adult, the ground tint changes to brown, often passing 

 to an ochre-yellow above, the colour that represents dorsal 

 ray ; the si)ots on the sides become indistinct, and only 

 visible on the neck ; the posterior parts pass to blackish. 

 Inhabits Java. The Isle of Celebes produces a climatal 

 variety, recognisable by an acute angular mark on the 

 upper part of the neck. Another local variety, characterized 

 by two black dorsal rays, and a similar ray on the sides of 

 the neck, comes from Sumatra. 



9. Coluber Pantherinus, a beautiful large species 

 which inhabits marshy places in Brazil ; form slender ; head 

 long and broad ; above i:)ale-brown, almost totally covered 

 by two series of very large spots of an irregular shape, 

 wiiich sometimes form transverse bands ; two dark rays 

 on the neck, and two or three bands on the top of the 

 head ; 15 rows of very large and smooth scales. S. 

 175 4- 90. 



10. Coluber virgatus seems in Japan to replace the 

 European C. quadriradiatus. Body comjiressed ; abdomen 

 angular ; muzzle broad and obtuse ; above brown, more or 

 less clear, verging to gi-een or olive, covered with large 

 spots or transverse bands ; the spots disaj^pear with age, 

 so that there only remain obsolete longitudinal rays ; 23 

 rows of carinated scales. S. 240+110. 



