MOLE SNAKES. (After Smith.) 
Fic. 43.—The Mole Snake (Pseudaspis cana), also known as the Zwart Slang and Lui Slang. Average length 
3 to4 feet. Mole Snakes vary remarkably in colouration. This illustration shows the black variety, the 
brown spotted variety, and the young. There are six pronounced varieties of colouration which are as 
follows: 1. Glossy black, shading into purple on the under parts. No trace of spotsormarkings. (Zwart 
Slang.) 2. Brown, covered with blackish, irregular, more or less rounded markings. Under-parts yellowish. 
3. Uniform dark brown. Lighter on the under-parts. No trace of markings. 4. Brick red in colour, 
covered with more or less rounded blackish markings. Under-parts yellowish. 5. Half-grown young. 
Sometimes like No. 2 and No. 3. I have examined specimens from Eastern Province of Cape Colony 
which are light brown, with a succession of lateral markings from the tip of the tail to the head. These 
are made up of alternate black and white spots. The spots over the backbone are the largest, and 
form a continuous line of black, running lengthwise. 6. Young, from birth to 3 months of age. 
Brown, with wavy cross-markings of blackish. These markings are edged with white, and the whole 
form four longitudinal series. 
