NOTES ON SNAKES COLLECTED IN CANNANORE. 293 



the driest and hottest months, viz., March and April. In the wet months 

 th3y were correspondingly scarce, May, June, and July producing only 

 5 specimens. My largest specimen was 2 feet 4f inches, and the 

 smallest, which, I believe, was a hatchling, was 8J inches. The navel 

 involved 5 ventral shields, and 43 intervened between it and the anal. 

 A pregnant female, 1 foot 8f inches, contained 6 eggs with no trace of 

 embryo on the 7th December 1903. 



It is quite common to find some of the sub-caudals divided. The 

 first infralabials sometimes fail to meet behind the symphysial. 



Family COLUBRID^. 



Sub-family Coi/UBRIN^:. 



Lycodon aulicus. 



Called by the natives " Choorrta." Of the 50 specimens collected 

 the sex is not noted in 7, and of the 43 remaining 25 were females 

 and 18 males. The females have longer bodies than the males and, it 

 seems, rather shorter tails. 



Ventrals £ 192—203. Sub-caudals 55—70. 

 „ $ 177—186. „ 63—73. 



Only 3 specimens exceeded 2 feet in length. 



It was fairly abundant throughout the year, but perhaps more so 

 during the dry weather. 



I found a gecko ingested on two occasions and a mouse once. 



It will be observed that I have recorded in the following table a very 

 fair sequence of events from the reported coition of a pair in Novem- 

 ber to the appearance of hatchlings in May and June. The smallest 

 mother was 1 foot 6^ inches long. The eggs, from 3 — 10 in number, 

 were unusually elongate, being often more than twice as long as broad 

 and the largest measured If inches in length. I foiled to hatch any 

 of these out in spite of many endeavours. Hatchlings measured from 

 7^ — 7f inches, or about one-third the length of a large adult. The 

 navel involved 3 — 4 ventrals, and 20—23 ventrals were interposed 

 between it and the anal. 39 of the 50 specimens belonged to 

 Boulenger's varieties D and E* ( the L. capucinus and the L. 

 unicolor of Boie.), neither of which, however, I think, can claim to be 

 regarded as distinct forms, as I found every gradation between 

 them. In fact, two hatchlings obtained on consecutive days from 

 the same small heap of tiles, and which, I think, may reasonably be 



* Cat. Snakes, Brit. Mus., Vol., I, pp, 353-4. 



