46 



I Hydrophobus Nympha, 

 4 Lycodon Aulicus, 

 I Tropidonotus Stolatus, 

 I Dryophis Mycterizans, 

 I Oligodon Sublineatus, 

 I Tropidonotus Quincunciatus. 

 Although I stopped three months at Anuradha- 

 pura, all these snakes (22) were caught within two 

 weeks, an unusual run of luck. 



The Ancistrodon Hypnale seemed to be very 

 numerous round Anuradhapura, and also at Min- 

 neriya, but during two years of snake hunting in 

 the Central Province I only succeeded in obtaining 

 two specimens. All the specimens I obtained of 

 this snake were caught in a patch of jungle that 

 was being cleared, and they seemed to live chiefly 

 among tree stumps and in rotten wood, which fact 

 is also borne out by their colouration. A sixth 

 iVncistrodon was killed by coolies, but was chopped 

 to pieces. All the Lycodons I obtained (four in 

 number) were found in the mud wall of a hut 

 which I broke down. I also found a fifth one, but 

 let it go on account of its small size. The owner 

 of the house was so alarmed at the number of 

 snakes caught, that he insisted on also breaking 

 down the wall of another house that he was living 

 in, in order that I could kill any snakes that might 

 be found there. The man's fear is accounted for 

 by the fact that the Sinhalese mistake the Lycodon 

 for the deadly Bungarus Ceylonicus ; they call it 

 Mapila (or sometimes Karrawila), and believe that 

 it kills men by sucking their blood away. 

 Large Two of the Rat-snakcs (Zamenis Mucosus) 



Rat-snakes. ^yj^j^N]-^ J obtained were of extremely large size. 



One was gft. 6fin., and the other gft. 3J in. Out 

 of the many Rat-snakes I had killed previously at 

 different times, only one had exceeded gft. (a 

 specimen gft. 4in., killed in the Knuckles district). 



