THE COBRA 91 



struck, and his head came unpleasantly near to my 

 legs ! 



The cobra is a species of considerable interest to the 

 zoologist. In the first place, several varieties exist. 

 Some cobras have no figure marked on the hood, others 

 display a pattern like a pair of spectacles, while others 

 show a monocle. These are known respectively as the 

 anocellate, the binocellate, and the monocellate varie- 

 ties. The binocellate form is most frequently met with. 

 It is found all over India. It is the only variety that 

 occurs in Madras, and the one most commonly found 

 in Bombay and North-Western India. The great 

 majority of the cobras that dwell in Central India 

 belong to the anocellate variety. This form is also 

 found on the frontier from Afghanistan to Sikkim. The 

 monocellate variety is the common cobra of Bengal, 

 Burma, and China. 



There can be but little doubt that the cobra is a 

 form undergoing active evolution. Naia tripudians 

 appears to be spHtting up into three species. The 

 spectacled cobra is probably the ancestral form. The 

 black anocellate variety seems best adapted to the 

 climatic conditions of the Central Provinces, while 

 the pale, binocellate form thrives in Southern India. 

 It is possible that these external characteristics are 

 in some way correlated with adaptability to particular 

 environments. Curiously enough, brown, yellow, and 

 black varieties of the African cobra {Naia haje) exist. 

 Some species of birds display a similar phenomenon. 

 The coucal or crow-pheasant, for example, is divided 

 up into three local races. Most naturahsts are agreed 



