154 REPTILES AND BATRACHIANS 



this snake exclusively feeds. The adaptation consists in 

 a reduction of the teeth, which are few and minute, so 

 as to permit the passage of the egg, which reaches the 

 gullet unbroken, and where it comes into contact with 

 numerous large and cutting tooth-like processes of the 

 vertebrae in that region, the object of which is to break 

 the shell, the latter being ejected in the form of a pellet 

 some minutes after feeding. In spite of the fact that 

 this creature seldom attains a length of more than two 

 feet, it has not the slightest difficulty in swallowing eggs 

 three or four times the size of its head. 



The Egg-eating Snake is pale brown or olive above, 

 usually with large dark brown spots disposed in three 

 longitudinal series ; a ^-shaped marking is constant on the 

 nape. The scales are more strongly keeled than in any 

 other non-poisonous species, and the keels on the lateral 

 scales are much serrated. In captivity it does exceedingly 

 well, provided it be kept under perfectly dry conditions ; 

 two specimens at the Zoological Gardens devoured, 

 between them, 124 pigeons' eggs in the course of a year, 

 these being usually taken at night. 



The Opisthoglypha, the Back-fanged Snakes, were 

 all until quite recently regarded as perfectly harmless to 

 man, their poison being considered only of sufficient 

 activity as to paralyse the prey upon which they live. In 

 the last few years, however, this view has been shown to be 

 erroneous, several of these snakes having been proved to 

 be highly dangerous ; the lack of respect with which they 

 had been treated in the past was due merely to the fact 

 that on the rare occasions that these snakes have inflicted 



