SNAKES. 217 



8. HOPLOCEPHALUS SUPERBUS. 



Alecto curta, Dum. ^' Bibr. (not Schlegel) p. 1252, except 

 p. 1254, line 7 : a 17 rangees longitudinales. 



Scales in fifteen rows ; vertical shield narrow, more than twice 

 as long as broad. Above brown or brownish olive ; belly ante- 

 riorly olive, becoming blackish towards the tip of tail. 



a. Large specimen. Voyage of the Erebus and Terror. Captain 



Sir James Ross's Expedition. 



b. Adult. Voyage of the Erebus and Terror, Captain Sir James 



Ross's Expedition. 



c. Adult. Voyage of the Erebus and Terror. Captain Sir James 



Ross's Expedition. 



d. Adult. Van Diemen's Land. Presented by Lieut. A. J. Smith. 

 e,f. Adult and half-groMH. Van Diemen's Land. Presented 



hy R. Gunn, Esq. 

 g. Adult. New Holland. From M. Parzudaki's Collection as 



Alecto curta, 

 h-k. Adult female and half-grown. South Australia. Presented 



by Dr. Fleming. 

 I, m. Nearly half-grown. Swan River. From the Haslar Collection. 

 n. Nearly half-grown. Swan River. 

 0. Adult. Australia. 

 p. Young. Australia. 



Description. — Body moderate, rounded, rather depressed ; tail 

 rather short, thin, distinct from trunk, tapering ; head scarceh' 

 distinct from neck, quadrangular, with flat crown and moderate, 

 rounded muzzle ; superciliaries prominent, a groove before the 

 eye. All the shields of head proportionate ; rostral just reaching 

 the surface of crown ; vertical more than twice as long as broad, 

 with nearly parallel outer edges and nearly a right angle behind ; 

 occipitals rounded behind, not much forked. Anterior ocular 

 raised above the surface of crown, grooved. Scales always in 

 fifteen rows. Above uniform olive-brown, one or two outer 

 rows of scales with a large yellowish spot in the centre ; beneath 

 olive, towards behind blackish, plates more or less blackish - 

 edged. A series of three or four smaller, smooth teeth behind 

 the fang. In the eggs I could easily find the head of the foetus. 

 Length of cleft of mouth f " ; length of tail 6;^" ; total length 43" ; 

 length of egg f " ; breadth of egg f ". 



4. PsEUDECHis, Wagler. 



Body rather elongate and rounded ; tail moderate, not distinct 

 from trunk, tapering; head not distinct from neck, moderate, 

 quadrangular, with moderate rounded muzzle ; shields of crown 



L 



