417 



AMERICAN VARIETIES? 



IF Seba be in the right, either the Cobra de 

 Capello, or a species nearly allied to it, occurs in 

 some parts of South America. He describes and 

 figures one from Peru, which, in its general as- 

 pect, resembles the Indian, but has the neck not 

 apparently of greater diameter than the body : it 

 is marked with the spectacular patch, as in that 

 kind, the whole area of the hood being dusky or 

 brown ; and a collar of the same colour at a small 

 distance beneath : the colour of the rest of the 

 animal rufous grey, with slight whitish variega- 

 tions. Another kind is from Brasil, and is repre- 

 sented as of smaller size than usual (perhaps a half- 

 grown animal), and of a ferruginous colour, with 

 several dusky bands round the upper part of the 

 body : the hood or dilated part marked with a pale 

 or blueish-grey spectacle mark, with two black 

 spots on each limb, one above the other. These 

 Snakes the Count de Cepede is willing to consider 

 as distinct species, under the titles of the Peruvian 

 and Brazilian Naja. But perhaps Seba may have 

 been mistaken in supposing them American. 



Reflecting on these and other horrid natives of 

 the hotter regions of the globe, we cannot but join 

 in the sentiment of Linnaeus, congratulating our- 

 selves on our own happy state of security ; and may 

 well be willing to prefer the rigours of a northern 

 winter, with a temporary loss of vegetation, to the 



