ON THE COMMON INDIAN SNAKES. 537 



without suffering in any way. He says. " The snakes each time 

 struck at the rat savagely and repeatedly, but no trace of blood could 

 be seen on the animal. " These creatures were all in captivity at 

 Guindy near Madras. 



Breeding. — Though so common a snake the records of its breed- 

 ing are very meagre. Miss Hopley tells us * that in the London 

 Zoological Gardens in 1875 one gave birth to 3 young in July, and 

 mentions that they changed their coats at an early date, but ate 

 nothing. 



The only gravid specimen I have had in captivity gave birth in 

 Trichinopoly on the 7th August 1896 to 12 young. These coiled 

 themselves up into a confused heap in one corner of their box, and 

 apart from the mother, who evinced no special concern in her pro- 

 geny even when they were rudely stirred up with a stick. All of 

 them cast sloughs on the day of birth. The one individual that was 

 measured was 4£ inches long, f 



Sir A. H. McMahon writes to me that he once came across a lot of 

 little ones 3 or 4 inches long at the end of August, and has heard of 

 some more baby Echis being found about Quetta in August. No 

 mother was present on either occasion. 



Candy in this Journal J says that in Ratnagiri he made special 

 enquiry, and ascertained that the young are born in April, May, or 

 June but they were reported difficult to find. 



Much the most important record of this nature is that reported to 

 me recently by Major 0. A. Smith, 27th Punjabis, who witnessed the 

 birth of 3 young on the 6th of August 1907 in Multan. The mother 

 had been 3 weeks in captivity. The first snakeling was born in 

 membranes at 10-40 a. m., and took "a long time" to burst them 

 and force its way out. The second born in membranes at 11-12 took 

 four minutes getting free. The third also born in membranes was 

 discharged at 11-25 a.m., began struggling at 11-50 and was free at 

 11-53. It was observed that in trying to free themselves they exert- 

 ed pressure with their snouts against the membrane. After their 

 birth " a lot of jelly-like substance whitish in colour was passed out," 

 which I think may have been a non-fertile egg. During birth it was 

 noticed that a globular bag containing orange-coloured fluid first 



* Snakes, pp. 440 and 579. t Keferred to in this Journal, Vo). XIII, p. 184. 



X Vol. V, p. 85. 



