230 DAVENPORT ACADEMY OF NATURAL SCIENCES. 



March 3d, 1S78. — Biological Section. 

 Seven members present. 

 Dr. Farquharson reported the following : 



Post Mortem Examination of a Boa Constrictor. 

 BY R. J. FARQUHARSON, M. D. 



A Boa constrictor, 7 feet in length, was received about Sept. 1st, 1877, 

 from Hon. Jas. Thorington, U. S. Consul at Aspinwall. It swallowed a 

 rat shortly before starting on the journey, and another rat was placed in 

 the box to serve for food on the way, but was not eaten. On its arrival 

 here the boa was quite torpid, and spent a considerable time in shedding 

 its skin, which was done in a very gradual and imperfect manner. A 

 rat, which was placed in the cage about a week after its arrival, bit it 

 badly about the head and nose, thus causing the snake much suffering. 

 Numbers of rabbits, pigeons, or other animals, were from time to time 

 put into the cage, but the Boa took no notice of them. It was kept in a 

 room with a fire all winter, and kept itself snugly coiled up in a blanket 

 most of the time. In January it began to appear more active, but only 

 for a short time, as it finally died on February 1st, having eaten nothing 

 for nearly six months. Soon after its death, a post mortem examina- 

 tion was made, with the following result. 



In removing the skin and preparing the skeleton, the following obser- 

 vations were made: Near the anus the ducts of two glands were cut 

 across, which were filled with a dark colored semi-fluid matter, with a 

 terribly pungent foetid and musky odor. 



The small bones of the rudimentary hind limbs, characteristic of the 

 Boidse, were not found, being either imbedded in the thick skin, or over- 

 looked from their small size, owing to the immaturity of the specimen. 



No sub-cutaneous nor inter-muscular fat was found ; but internally fat 

 was quite abundant in the mesentery, and about the kidneys and other 

 organs of the abdomen. 



The stomach and a part of the intestines were empty, in the lower 

 part of the latter some masses of the same foecal matter (consisting 

 principally of the hair of the Peccary), which it had passed for several 

 months, and a large quantity of the peculiar urine, of the color and con- 

 sistency of partly melted ice cream. 



The gall bladder was filled with dark colored bile. 



The internal organs appeared healthy, with the sole exception of the 

 lung, the whole of which was inflamed, indicated by the diffused red 

 color, and by its being adherent to the cavity of the body throughout a 

 great part of its surface. Upon the inner or mucous surface of the lung 

 were found quite a large number of tubercles, some of which had soft- 

 ened. The largest of these would not exceed in size that of a No. 6 shot. 

 As in serpents lungs there are no air cells, nor any solid tissue, this 

 observation may be of aid in fixing the site of the corresponding miliary 

 tubercles in man. 



