THE SNAKES 277 



aid the snake in cutting through the shell is an ingenuous 

 development in the throat. Several of the vertebras have 

 strongly-formed, knife-like points extending into the 

 oesophagus, these cutting through the egg as it passes 

 into the throat. Dasypeltis scabra is the scientific name 

 of this interesting reptile. It is full grown when less 

 than a yard long, yet a specimen two and a half feet 

 long can swallow a hen's egg. During the process the 

 neck is enormously distended, the scales forming widely- 

 separated rows. The egg moves a short distance down 

 the throat, when the sharp processes described are 

 brought to bear upon it by a constriction of the muscles ; 

 the swelling suddenly collapses when the snake rears the 

 anterior part of the body slightly to permit the contents 

 of the egg to run down its throat. Some examples dis- 

 gorge the crumpled mass of shell soon after; others 

 swallow and dissolve this part of the meal. If the feast 

 consists of the soft, leathery-shelled eggs of some other 

 species of snake, the integument of the eggs is invariably 

 swallowed. The Egg-Eating Snake is a common spe- 

 cies; its coloration is pale brown with three rows of 

 darker blotches. The eye has an elliptical pupil and 

 the body scales are keeled. 



The Opisthoglypha: A study of this Colubrine 

 division will dispel a number of pet theories. Venomous 

 snakes are far more numerous than they are supposed 

 to be. The old, popular supposition has it that poisonous 

 serpents may be instantly detected by their thick bodies 

 and wicked, heart-shaped heads. This is altogether 

 wrong, even when applied to the vipers themselves — they 

 constituting but one family of the venomous serpents. 

 An imposing aggregation of entirely innocuous serpents 

 exhibit just these outlines. The snakes of the present, 

 extensive division have every indication in outline and 



