PRESIDENT S ADDRESS. 25 



Pythonidae The Pythons are at the present day restricted to 

 Africa, Asia, and Australia ; Python reticulatus reaches a length 

 of 30 feet. It is a common species in India. P. moliirus, which 

 is smaller, is found in the Pleistocene of Madras, and the 

 Pliocene of the Punjaub. Vertebrae of Palaeopython have 

 been found in the Upper Eocene of Switzerland, of England, and 

 France. The vertebrae of fossil Snakes occur in the Lower 

 Oligocene fresh-water beds of Hampshire, and in the equivalent 

 Phosphorites of Central France. Twenty extremely fine 

 vertebrae, ribs, and maxillae of Heteropython (Python Eubaeiacus) 

 have been found in the Miocene of Koumi, in Eubaea. 



Boidae These differ from the Pythonidae by the absence of 

 pre-maxillary teeth. Boavus and Lithophis are found in the 

 Eocene of Wyoming, North America ; Botrophis Gaudiyi in the 

 Miocene of Sansans, Gers. Erycidae allied to Boidae, tail shorter 

 and non-prehensile, Aphelophis talpivorus from the Miocene of 

 Colorado, Ogmophis Oregonensis from the Miocene of Colorado 

 and Oregon, Calamagrus murivorus and Scaptophis miocccnicus from 

 the Miocene of Sansans, Gers, belong to this family. 



Ptyas, formerly allocated to the Colubridae, is represented by 

 P. mucosiis in the Pleistocene of Madras. Skeletons of 

 Tropidonotus atavus have been found in the paper lignites of 

 Rott, near Bonn. A species of Periops, closely allied to one now 

 living in Egypt, occurs in the Pleistocene of Coudes, Puy de 

 Dome, France, also Elaphis fossilis which does not essentially 

 differ from Coluber j'Esculapii, the Serpent represented by the 

 ancients as entwined round the staff of ^Esculapius. Pilemophis, 

 closely allied to the living Tropidonotus, occurs in the Middle 

 Miocene of France, and in the fresh-water Miocene of Oeningen 

 which contains besides the remains of Colubridae, those of 

 Viperidae (Vipcra Laurenli). A Crotalide (Laophis crotaloides) 

 occurs in the Tertiary of Salonica and from contemporary beds of 

 Oregon and Colorado we have several Erycidae (Aphelophis, 

 Ogmophis). This sub-family no longer exists in the Old World. 



Elapidae Naja. Poison-fangs with a distinct groove an- 

 teriorly, N. tripudians. This is the best known and most 



