THE ATRACTASPIS VIPERS. 243 



The Berg Adder. 



{Bit is atropos.) 



The Berg Adder, as its name implies, is a snake which inhabits 

 mountainous regions. It is not, however, conlined to these 

 mountainous parts. It has been found as high up as the summit 

 of Mount Aux Sources, 11,000 feet high, and at the sea shore. 



This Mountain Adder inhabits the mountain ranges of the 

 whole of South Africa. In these parts it is frequently met 

 with out on the bare hillsides prowling round in search of lizards 

 on which it principally feeds. When the occasion presents itself, 

 the Berg Adder will devour the fallow young of birds which build 

 their nests upon the ground. The chicks of the Mountain 

 Partridge or Francolin frequently fall victims to this crafty 

 Adder, who lies as still as the stones and earth which he so closely 

 resembles. Mice, rats, the larger larvae of insects, etc., are also 

 eaten by it. The Berg Adder is as venomous as the Puff Adder. 

 They do not thrive in captivity unless the cage is out-of-doors 

 where the snakes can bask freely in the sun's rays. Several have 

 been kept at the Port Elizabeth Museum for long periods and fed 

 on toads and mice. They are not uncommon in the demarcated 

 forest on the southern side of Port Elizabeth, and amidst the 

 sand dunes. Several have recently given birth to batches of 

 young, in each instance during the month of March. The number 

 at a birth averaged from ten to fifteen. Berg Adders often 

 attack and swallow other species of snakes. 



The Atractaspis Vipers. 



These snakes, although classed with the Viper family, are 

 altogether different in shape from most other members of this 

 family. Their bodies are cylindrical, head small and not distinct 

 from the neck, eyes very small, and scales smooth and close- 

 fitting. In fact, any one is apt to mistake these vipers for harm- 

 less BHnd Burrowing snakes {Typhlops) , for, in addition to their 

 outward appearance being somewhat similar, their habits are 

 more or less the same as those of the Blind Burrowing snakes, or 

 Acontias or Legless Burrowing Lizards. There are eleven species 

 of these Atractaspis snakes in Africa, two of which inhabit South 

 Africa, viz., Bibron's Adder and Duerden's Adder. 



A remarkable thing about them is the development of their 



