168 SPOLIA ZEYLANICA. 



hitherto exhibited a gentle and even timid disposition, commenced 

 to behave in a quite extraordinary manner to-day. On looking 

 into the cage I found it tightly coiled round a toad many times too 

 large for its capacity, visibly constricting it, but not attempting 

 to swallow it. It presently abandoned the toad and then struck 

 out wildly at anything that approached it, including my hand, 

 though I have previously repeatedly handled it with impunity. 

 The excited Helena then — without any provocation — seized a 

 large " Whip-snake " by the middle of the body, around which it 

 instantly coiled itself in a tight knot, remaining in that position 

 for half an hour — its head free, but its body tightly constricted — 

 defying all attempts of the whip-snake (which appeared greatly 

 inconvenienced) to dislodge it. When offered a small lizard — 

 as a distraction — it bit at it viciously, but would not retain it. A 

 large Tropidonotus stulatus was next assailed in the same manner, 

 but that snake easily threw it off. In the intervals of these 

 attacks it moved about the cage with the anterior part of its body 

 laterally compressed and twisted to one side, thereby displaying 

 to unusual advantage the white lateral ocelli. The constricting 

 habit was most marked, and is probably employed when capturing 

 prey ; but I have not yet detected it in the act of feeding. 



E. ERNEST GREEN. 



4. On the nesting of the snake^ Bungarus cet/lonicus. — I have 

 received specimens of some eggs and young snakes which I have 

 identified as Bungarus ceyloniciis, Giinth. My correspondent 

 tells me that they were found in a shallow depression, beneath a 

 wood-pile, in the month of January, 1905. " Both parents were 

 curled up in the hollow (made like a duck's nest, but not lined 

 in any way, just scooped and hollowed out of earth), and under 

 them were lots of eggs and little snakes." 



The eggs have a soft leathery shell and are lightly agglutinated 

 together. They are cylindrical, with rounded ends, varying in 

 length from 29 to 35 mm., with a breadth of 17 mm. The young 

 snakes are brownish black above, with well-defined white annuli ; 

 white beneath. The two specimens in my possession show 24 

 and 16 annuli resjjectively, exclusive of the broad fascia across 

 the head and the white tip to the tail. They measure 230 and 

 260 mm. in length. Even at this early age the vertebral row of 

 broad hexagonal scales is well demarked. The parent snakes 

 were unfortunately destroyed without any measurements being 



taken. 



E. ERNEST GREEN. 



