THE VIPER, OE ADDER. 85 



broad zigzag line down the whole length of its 

 body and tail, apparently formed by the conflu- 

 ence of a series of dark lozenge -shaped spots, 

 with irregular triangular spots on each side, are 

 the chief features in the markings of this species. 

 The scales, less visible without a closer examina- 

 tion, are also distinctive. Those on the top of 

 the head are not large plates as in the innocuous 

 snakes, but a greater number of smaller scales, 

 three being larger than the rest. The scales of 

 the back and sides are distinctly keeled, aftd dis- 

 posed in eighteen series. Those of the under 

 parts vary in their number, but are generally 

 from one hundred and forty to one hundred and 

 fifty, with about thirty-five pairs to the tail. It 

 is seldom so large as the common snake, and 

 the female, as amongst rapacious birds, is the 

 largest. 



Winged Scarabseus and Asps, from an Egyptian ornament. 



