264 THE VIVARIUM. 
young mice and rats, and those of sparrows and other small birds 
when they have been deprived of their feathers. 
C. esculapii is unusually narrow across the temples: its head 
is fairly distinct from the body; it has one prz-ocular, two 
post-oculars, eight or nine upper labials, of which the fourth and 
fifth, or fifth and sixth, touch the eye. The scales, which are 
smooth, or feebly keeled on the posterior part of the body, are 
arranged in twenty-one or twenty-three rows; the ventral scales, 
which terminate at the sides angulately, number from 212 to 
248 ; the sub-caudals are in pairs, from sixty to ninety-one. The 
colour above is grey, olive-brown, or a very beautiful light 
yellowish-green. The scales are sometimes finely edged with 
white, or bluish-white ; thus the beauty of the animal is much 
added to. There is a dark mark from the eye to the angle of the 
mouth ; the under parts are a pale yellow or a yellowish-green, 
When young, the animal is generally of a greyish-brown 
above, marked with four or five rows of spots of a darker shade ; 
there is a a-shaped black marking on the nape of the neck. 
This species sometimes reaches a length of more than 4ft., 
of which the tail measures about 10m. — It is a native of most of 
the warmer countries of Europe. It need not be supphed with 
artificial heat while in captivity in this country, and as winter 
approaches, if in good condition, it may be allowed to hibernate. 
When first caught it is generally ready to bite; but the teeth, 
however, are hardly able to pierce the skin. It soon becomes 
quite tame after being gently and properly handled. Asa rule, 
an untamed Snake of any kind which tries to bite while being 
caught or released, ceases to attack when held securely in the 
hand. In other words, there is less danger of a bite while holding 
a Snake than in catching it or letting it go. 
The Back-marked Snake (Coluber scalaris, Boulenger, or 
Rhinechis sealaris, Dum. and Bibr.) is a native of Europe, 
and is chiefly found in the South of France and Spain. It 
feeds on lizards and mice, and, as it is fairly hardy, it may 
be kept in captivity without artificial heat, and if in good con- 
dition, allowed to pass the winter in a state of hibernation. It 
is a curiously marked Snake; hence its specific name. The 
head of the animal is distinct from the body, and wide at its 
