70 GLEANINGS FROM NA 77 /,' /: 



snake delicacies are there plentiful two conditions 

 of life, which, if a snake possess, fully satisfy it hero 

 below. It is perfectly harmless, not being able- to 

 open its small mouth sufficiently wide to bite a person 

 if it would; although by twisting about one's wrisr 

 or finger it may cause an involuntary snaky shudder 

 to creep up his back. 



The second species with the conic head indistinct 

 from the body is Virginia's snake, Virginia eh-ymi* 

 Kennicott. It is light olive brown above and yellow- 

 ish beneath, while scattered over the 

 upper surface are numerous small black 

 dots, resembling points made by a fine 

 pen. The scales are in 17 rows, very narrow and 

 faintly keeled. In Indiana Virginia's snake has been 

 recorded only from Brown County. Its habits are 

 unknown, but presumably the same as those of the 

 worm snake, since it frequents similar localities. 



Two other small snakes remain to be mentioned, 

 and although neither is strictly brown yet they will 

 be treated of in this connection. One is the "ring- 

 necked snake," Diadophis punctatus (L.), a handsome 

 little reptile, blue-black above, pale 

 orange below, and with a conspicuous 

 Snake yellowish ring about the neck. The 

 , smooth scales are in 15 rows, and on 



the outer end of each of the ventral plates there is 

 usually a small black spot, while a median row of 

 similar spots is sometimes present on the under side 

 between the head and tail. 



Growing to a length of a foot or more, the ring- 

 necked snake is usually found beneath the loose bark 



