SNAKES 153 



as soon as they emerge from the egg, and flatten out the 

 anterior parts of their bodies or feign death according to 

 their individual dispositions. 



The Western Hog-nosed Snake, H. nasicus, which 

 inhabits the United States west of the Mississippi, and 

 Northern Mexico, is remarkable for the development of 

 the shield covering the end of the snout, which measures 

 nearly a quarter of an inch in length. 



Hog-nosed Snakes, in spite of the fact that they live in 

 dry, sandy districts, in captivity, at least, feed entirely on 

 frogs and toads. 



Contia, a genus comprising twenty-five small terrestrial 

 and arboreal species, is restricted to North and South 

 America and the temperate parts of Asia. The head, 

 which is very small, is indistinct from the neck ; the body 

 is long and somewhat slender, with smooth or keeled scales ; 

 the teeth are small and subequal in size. 



The Summer Snake, C. cestiva, a very abundant arboreal 

 species inhabiting the United States, east of the Rocky 

 Mountains, is uniform bright green above, harmonizing 

 perfectly with the foliage of the low bushes it lives on. 

 The snake is remarkable inasmuch as it feeds almost 

 entirely on insects, caterpillars, grasshoppers, and spiders 

 being preferred. Specimens kept by the writer would 

 not pick up their food for themselves, but would swallow 

 gentles, spiders, and small strips of meat when these were 

 placed between their jaws. 



In the sub-family Rhachiodontince, of which the Egg- 

 eating Snake, Dasypeltis scabra, of Tropical and South 

 Africa is the sole representative, the teeth and gullet are 

 specially adapted for the swallowing of the eggs upon which 



