283 



smooth. Scales feebly keeled or almost smooth, in 21 — 25 rows 

 (27); ventrals 132 — 158; anal entire; subcaudals 21 — 57, in two 

 rows; tail not prehensile. 



Brown or yellowish above, with one or two series of large 

 dark brown squares on the back and a lateral series of small 

 spots; head dark brown above, lighter on the sides; a dark 

 brown temporal streak; lips with two broad, oblique, dark 

 brown bands between three light ones. Lower surface whitish, 

 powdered with brown or with brown spots, which fuse some- 

 times in two stripes. Length of head and body 625 mm.; 

 tail 115 mm. 



Habitat: Sumatra. — Singapore!; Penang; Malay Penin- 

 sula; Burma; Assam; Himalayas; Tibet. 



Oviparous; about 10 eggs are laid. 



The occurrence of this species in the Indo-Australian Archi- 

 pelago is indicated by BOULENGER in his Catalogue and in 

 Fauna of Malay Peninsula 1912, p. 216. 



2. Lachesis sumatranus (Raffles). 



Cohiber sutnatranus^ Raffles, Trans. Linn. Soc. XIII 1822, p. 334. 

 Lachesis sumatranus^ Boulenger, Cat. Sn. Ill 1896, p. 557 (s. syn.). 



Head long; snout short; eye moderate. Rostral as broad as 

 deep or a little more broad; nasal entire or divided; scales on the 

 head large, smooth, largest on the snout; supraocular large; no 

 scales or only one between the internasals; 4 — 9 scales between 

 the supraoculars; two or three postoculars; a subocular, in 

 contact with the third or third and fourth labials; nine to eleven 

 upper labials, second bordering the loreal pit, third largest; 

 temporal scales smooth. Scales feebly keeled, in 21 rows; 

 ventrals 180 — 191 ; anal entire; subcaudals 58 — 82, in two rows; 

 tail prehensile. 



Bright green above, the scales usually black-edged, with or 

 without black transverse bands; sometimes two series of small 

 light spots on the back; a yellowish streak on each side along 

 the outer row of scales usually present. Lower surface yellowish 

 or green, sometimes the ventrals black-edged ; end of tail 

 red. Length of head and body 1093 mm.; tail 167 mm. 



Nom. in dig. Birit tiu (Simalur); ular bisa (W. Sumatra). 



Habitat: Simalur!; Nias!; Mentawei Islands (Sipora); Su- 

 matra (Deli!, Langkat, Battak Highlands 800 — 1000 M., Indra- 



