BUCHHOLZ] THE GLASS ''SNAKE" 297 



less and almost unable to travel in spite of its most active efforts, 

 for its body is perfectly smooth and its ventral surface is not 

 equipped with the scutes with which a snake is provided. Its lack 

 of legs is an advantage in crawling through the grass, but would 

 prove a serious handicap if it lived on the bare ground. 



The glass "snake" may be distinguished from a real snake by its 

 well-developed eyelids and its external ear openings, neither of 

 which a serpent possesses. Its body is covered with smooth scales 

 which give it a glossy appearance. In color it is gray, spotted and 



The Glass "Snake." Average length about 27 inches. 

 Photograph from hfe. 



striped with brown and black. Its ventral surface is of a much 

 lighter shade, and the anterior portion of its body has conspicuous 

 folds on each side in the region containing the internal organs. 



The digestive tract and all the vital organs are contained within 

 the anterior one-third of its body, which averages about twenty- 

 seven inches in length. In case of emergency it is possible for this 

 "snake" to snap off its tail, the latter two-thirds of its length, with- 

 out serious injury. According to a widespread tradition, which is 

 as erroneous as the story of the "hoop snake," these parts reunite 

 and the snake escapes unharmed. 



There is no animal which has the power to reunite with any mem- 

 ber of its body after it has been completely broken off, or torn off. 

 However, many animals have the power to regenerate a lost part. 

 Spiders, crawfish, crabs and scorpions regenerate lost legs, but these 



