42 THE SNAKES OF SOUTH AFRICA. 



tells me that he nearly always finds these female Boomslangs on 

 the ground. Occasionally he has found them in shrubs, but their 

 usual habit is to hunt for their prey, which consists mainly of 

 lizards, on the ground. 



The Horned Adder is dingy, and when lying on the sand or 

 parched reddish soil of its native habitat it is practically invisible. 

 The Berg Adder amongst the grey and brown pebbles of the 

 hillside, with body flattened, is so inconspicuous that even the 

 wary rat will unsuspectingly run over it. Nature has adapted 

 them to their surroundings by changing the colour of their 

 skins. This adaptation of colouration of the various creatures 

 to their surroundings is wonderful and mysterious. It is most 

 certainly not induced by any thought-power, or desire in the- 

 snake's brain. It is abundantly evident there is a protecting 

 force or Law at work which operates without any conscious 

 desire or wish on the part of the creatures whom it seeks to 

 benefit, by making them as inconspicuous as possible to their 

 enemies and their intended prey. This great Natural Law is 

 quite impartial, as are all the Laws of God. It makes the colour 

 of one creature blend so perfectly with its surroundings as to 

 enable it to steal upon its intended victim unawares, but it also 

 seeks in a similar manner to render the intended prey as diffi- 

 cult to see as possible. This is one of the methods by wliich 

 Nature forces all living creatures to exert themselves mentally 

 and physically. For it is only by mental and physical activity 

 that the evolution of life proceeds. 



Fresh-water Snakes. 



The Fresh- water Snakes haunt the vicinity of rivers, pools, and 

 marshes, swimming and diving with the greatest ease and grace. 

 They hve mostly upon aquatic creatures such as tadpoles, frogs, 

 and fish. Specimens kept in captivity readily seize and eat 

 small hve fish placed in their water-pan. These snakes do not 

 live habitually in the water. In fact, they only enter the water 

 in search of prey. If a frog or fish be seized in the water, the 

 snake will swim to land with it. I have seen Green Water Snakes 

 carry frogs several yards up a sloping bank. The snake holds 

 its prey in its jaws and raises the head and fore part of the body 

 off the ground when thus employed. 



