342 JOURNAL, BOMB A Y NA TVRAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XIX. 



ochre spots. With all this variety of form the specimens do not lend them- 

 selves to a grouping into colour varieties, for scarcely two specimens are 

 quite alike. The costal scales are, as far as I am aware, quite unique in this 

 species. The median 5 or so rows are straight, the remaining rows slightly 

 oblique, except the two last which again are straight. As in the Tropidonoti 

 the scales are in 19 rows till just beyond the middle of the body when they 

 become 17 by an absorption of the ikd row above the ventrals. Sometimes 

 this absorption takes place at or before midbody. 



Trachischium fuaciim (Blyth). 

 In the vicinity of Darjeeling this is by far the commonest species to be 

 met with between about 5,000 and 7,500 feet. I obtained 194 specimens, 151 

 from Kurseong, 33 from Darjeeling, and 10 from Pashok. These varied in 

 length from bj inches to 1 foot 4f inches. 



Sexes. — Of 88 specimens sexed 51 were $$,37^^. The largest ^ was 

 1 foot 2\ inches, but several 9 exceeded this measurement, the largest being 

 1 foot 4^ inches. 



Breeding.- — ^The pairing season was evidently over, for many hatchlings 

 between 5 and 6 inches in length were obtained in July. Seven out of 31 9 $ 

 collected in that month in Kurseong were gravid, the smallest being 1 foot and 

 f of an inch. One contained 6 eggs, two 4 eggs and four 3 eggs, the largest egg 

 measuring from % to \ inch in length, and about | inch in breadth. The young 

 are apparently between 5 and 6 inches long as they emerge from the egg. 

 The secretion of the anal gland was found to be custard-like. 

 Food. — This snake appears to feed exclusively on earth worms, several were 

 killed in the act of swallowing a worm, almost every specimen I opened had 

 fragments of worms or entire worms in the stomach, and the intestines much 

 distended with mud, evidently from the alimentary system of worms. From 

 the many specimens I opened I should judge the snake to be voraciously 

 vermivorous. 



Lepidosis. — Boulenger says that the prsefrontal is usually single. I found 

 it invariably single. 165 was the largest number of ventrals and 3] the 

 smallest number of subcaudals. In one specimen the first 9 subcaudals 

 were entire, in another the last ventral was divided. The ^ have the 

 scales in the region of the vent rather more obviously keeled than the 9 • 

 The eye is very black, but if closely viewed the iris is seen to lie dark- 

 brown (almost liver coloured), and the pupil is discernible. 



It is a very gentle little snake, often encountered in daylight about the 

 roads in Darjeeling. I frequently handled it without its attempting to bite 

 me. At Kurseong it is so abundant that it can be found under most stones 

 on the slopes about there, and Mr. H. K. Robinson told me that after rewards 

 for snakes had been offered, the hill men would alter the landscape features 

 of a whole hill side by rolling over each stone in their search for snakes which 

 when brought in consisted almost entirely of this species. 



Colour. — Adults are black, or blackish with iridescent effects on reflected 



