REPTILIA 259 



The marine snakes are fine examples of a purely aquatic type, that 

 never, except for breeding purposes, come out of the water. The 

 species Platurus laticaudatus (Fig. 141, D) illustrates the structural and 

 functional adaptations for marine life. They are laterally compressed 

 in the tail region, with dorsal and ventral fin folds; their mode of 

 swimming is precisely like that of eels. They are decidedly venomous. 

 They are viviparous, the female coming ashore to give birth to her 

 young among the rocks. The new-born young are about two feet 

 long and much less specialized for aquatic life than the adults. 



The Cobra (Fig. 141, B), Naja tripudians, is perhaps the king of all 

 the snakes, and with a description of its habits we shall bring this 

 brief account of a not too pleasant topic to a close. The writer finds 

 it impossible to wax even moderately enthusiastic about snakes. The 

 cobra is a native of India, China and Malaysia. Very large specimens 

 reach a length of six feet ; but it is not for their size that the cobras are 

 so noteworthy, but for their striking appearance, their venomousness 

 and their sacredness. They are distinguished by the huge hood or 

 neck swelling, upon which appears a color pattern resembling a death 's 

 head or a pair of spectacles, depending on the strength of one's imag- 

 ination. They are an almost invariable accompaniment of the 

 typical Indian conjurer, who charms them and makes them dance to 

 his weird music. The dance is done by erecting the head with inflated 

 hood and by waving it back and forth to the rhythm of the music. 

 The cobra is by nature docile and has no inclination to bite; but when 

 it does strike it is a serious matter, and the number of victims of cobra 

 bite every year is appalling. Some of the natives possess snake stones, 

 a sort of porous material that appears to have the property of absorb- 

 ing the poison. The owner of such a stone is deemed by his acquaint- 

 ances to possess a priceless talisman. In India the cobra is considered 

 a sacred animal and, on that account, no systematic campaign of 

 extermination has been started against it. 



In concluding this chapter on reptiles it may be said that no ac- 

 count of development has been given, for the reason that reptilian and 

 avian embryology are so similar that the account given for the bird 

 at the end of the next chapter will do duty for the reptilian type of 

 development also. 



