230 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XV III. 



In the former case the descent is retarded. 1 prefer the use of the 

 term " springing " to that of " flying " in describing these feats. Its 

 only rivals in acrobatic and scansorial achievements are the tree 

 snakes of the genera Dendrophis and Dry aphis.* 



Breeding.— Our information on this point is scanty. Evans and I 

 obtained one in May with ovarian follicles impregnated, one in June 

 with 9 eggs in the abdomen, and a small specimen, length not noted, 

 believed to be a hatchling in June. These were all obtained in 

 Rangoon. Since these specimens were recorded in this Joumaif, 

 Evans acquired a specimen from Hanthawaddy, Lower Burma, in 

 June containing 11 eggs ; and a brood of (J young in June in 

 Rangoon. 



It is clearly from the above notes not a very prolific specie-. 



The measurements of the eggs were not recorded. 



The young in the brood recorded by Evans| measured from l\ 

 to 6 inches in length. 



It is not known whether this snake is oviparous or viviparous. 

 Without being too positive I am inclined to think that the eggs I 

 extracted " ex abdomina " contained embryos in a very early stage 

 of development. 



This snake grows 9 or more inches each year, so that the specimens 

 reported by Evans 13i and 14 inches long in August were the previ- 

 ous year's production. 



My smallest prospective mother was 3 feet 7 inches long in dune 

 and therefore in her 5th year. 



Distribution. — This is very extensive, ranging as it does between the 

 western shores of India on the extreme West, through the Malayan 

 regions (continental and insular), South China to the Philippine- in 

 the extreme East. 



So far as the Indian Peninsula is concerned it > distribution 



is peculiar, and very interesting. It is only found in a small tract 



of country in the southern part of the Malabar Coast, and in 



Eastern Bengal. The accompanying maps show the exact localities 



where it has been met with. 



In Ceylon it is not very uncommon, 1 met with more than one spe- 

 cimen in a four years' residence though not at that time a collector of 



* For further rema4 8"n Hying emkes se3 post-script. t Vol. XIII, p. 614. 



X Vol. XVI, p. 170. 



