Mr. G. Krefft on a new Australian Snake. 225 
Fish’ out of the bush, called by the natives Egalegala; they are 
perfectly black, and are very fine eating. They are so fat they will 
fry without butter, taste something like eels; they are in shape 
something like ‘ Cat-fish,’ with filaments from the lower jaw ; they 
live amongst the mud in the mangrove bush. It would be grand 
to acclimatize them ; they are such fine eating. They would drive 
eels out of the market.” 
DescripTION oF ASPIDIOTES MELANOCEPHALUS, A NEW 
SNAKE FROM Port Denison, N.E. AustratiA. By GERARD 
Krerrt, Acting CurRATOR AND SECRETARY, AUSTRALIAN 
Museum, SYDNEY. 
Fam. Borp. 
ASPIDIOTES, nov. gen. 
Crown covered with broad shields reaching behind the eyes; the 
remaining part of the head scaly ; labial shields without pits, the 
front ones high and narrow, the hinder shields lower and broad. 
Nostrils lateral, in the middle of a plate, two loreals, two anterior 
and four posterior oculars ; superciliaries broad, rather prominent 
above the eye; nasal shield very large, much produced backwards, 
and deeply grooved on its lower edge. Scales smooth, in fifty-two 
series on the middle of the body ; ventral plates rather narrow ; sub- 
caudals entire, except the last ten or twelve, which are divided. 
Tail conical, prehensile, ending ina blunt point. Head rather high, 
of moderate size; teeth not very large (smaller than in Morelia). 
Body thick and compressed. 
ASPIDIOTES MELANOCEPHALUS. 
Scales in 52 series on the middle of the body. Ventral shields 
narrow, 330. Anal entire. Subcaudals 51x. 
Head rather high ; body thick and compressed ; tail conical, taper- 
ing, prehensile, ending in a blunt point; anal spurs small ; ten upper 
labials, the sixth coming into the orbit ; two anterior and four poste- 
rior ocular shields; two loreals, the second nearest to the eye very 
small; one nasal, pierced by the nostril ; eye moderate, pupil ellip- 
Ann. & Mag. N. Hist. Ser. 3. Vol. xiv. 15 
