74 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



A LIZARD MIMICKING A POISONOUS SNAKE. 



By T. S. Hall, M.A. 



{Read before the Field Naturalists^ Club of Victoria, \Gth July, 1905.) 



A SPECIMEN was recently sent to me for identification which 

 appeared to be the young stage of the brown snake, JJiemenia tex- 

 tilis, D. and B., named by M'Coy Furina bicucullata. On turning 

 to M'Coy's plate in his "Prodromus of the Zoology of Victoria," the 

 colouring of my specimen appeared almost identical with that of 

 the coloured figure. There were the same velvety black patches on 

 the head and nape, with deep orange between the two bands and 

 behind the last. The back had the exact tint of pale brown in 

 both cases. True, there were no transverse black marks on the 

 body, and the ventral surface was not mottled as in the figure 

 and was of a paler tint. But these markings I knew were 

 variable, and the bands and spots were often absent. The only 

 other noticeable colour difference was a light transverse line 

 cutting the anterior black patch into two nearly equal parts. 

 Still, I felt satisfied as to the identity of my specimen. However, 

 to make quite sure, I examined the plates of the head. They 

 did not agree, and, glancing at the body, I saw that I was the 

 victim of one of Nature's practical jokes, for the specimen was 

 clearly one of the so-called legless lizards. 



Having been deceived myself, I suppose it was only in accord- 

 ance with human nature for me to wish to entrap as many of my 

 friends as possible. One after another they pronounced it to 

 be M'Coy's Furina. I shall mention no names ; they must 

 confess themselves. I need only say that it was extremely com- 

 forting to me to find one naturalist after another falling into the 

 trap which Nature had so cunningly laid. Two people, how- 

 ever, were not to be caught. They were Mr. J. A. Keartland and, 

 needless to say, Mr. C. Frost. 1 was anxious about Mr. Frost, 

 but it was not to be ; the eye of the specialist was too keen. 

 There seems to be what one may term an acquired colour- 

 blindness, which has to be cultivated in many branches of 

 science. 



Though so different in colour from the specimen figured by 

 M'Coy, my example was, according to Mr. P>ost, the widely- 

 ranging and variable Afvasia jndchella. 



We can readily see the advantage to be gained by a harm- 

 less lizard mimicking a poisonous snake, and it is of interest 

 to find it imitating a growth stage of its own size, for as the 

 brown snake grows it loses the distinctive black colouring of 

 its head, and is quite unlike what it was in the young state. 



The specimen came from Queensland, though I am sorry to 

 say I cannot say from what part. 



