NOTES. 75 



1. Habits of Whip-'make. — With i^eference to my recent note in 

 Spolia Zeylanica, I have now to report that a freshly captured 

 specimen of Dryophis mycterizans supports, by its actions, its 

 popular native name of '* Eye-piercing Snake." When first placed 

 in the cage it repeatedly struck at my face, though it would not 

 take any notice of my hand under any circumstances. It also struck 

 repeatedly at the eye-pieces of a pair of binocular field-glasses. It 

 struck at a piece of white sponge to which a small black disc had 

 been attached (to represent an eye), but it never hit the disc, always 

 catching hold of the sponge itself. It also struck at the plain 

 sponge without the disc. 



E. ERNEST GREEN. 

 Peradeniya, June 17, 1903. 



5. Food of the Whip-snake. — Apropos of Mr. Ernest Green's 

 notes on the habits of the green whip-snake, I should wish to add 

 my own experience of the reptile as a captor of small birds. Some 

 years ago (may be five or six), while walking about the grounds of 

 the School of Agriculture in Thurston road, Cinnamon Gardens, 1 

 was attracted by the cry of a bird in distress, and on looking about 

 found a green snake, hanging to a branch by its tail, with a little 

 bird in its jaws. While taking in the situation and thinking how 

 to rescue the prey, I saw another tiny bird, which was flying by, 

 caught up by a second snake hanging close to the first. My 

 companion and I lost no time in releasing the two captives by 

 vigorously throwing stones at the snakes, and had the satisfaction 

 of seeing the birds flying off with a cry of joy, apparently none 

 the worse for their experience. 



C. DRIEBERG. 

 Colombo, July 20, 1903. 



6. Hedgehogs in Ceylon. — Last July a hedgehog was obtained 

 by Mr. G. A. Joseph at Wellawatta near Colombo fz-om a man who 

 said he had taken it from a hole in the ground beneath a log. 



This animal agrees in most of its characters with the South 

 Indian hedgehog, Erinacens microjnis* but presents certain 

 differences. There is no nude median space on the top of the 

 head dividing the spines into two groups, and the extreme tips of 

 the spines are not white, but dark. 



* Blanford, W. T., Mamm. Ind., 1888 1891, p. 218. 



