RAPID SECRETION OF VENOM. 189 



One day I came across a Ringhals out on the veld. He 

 instantly reared and remained on the defensive. I kept out of 

 reach of any venom he might spit at me, and adopting the Mun- 

 goose plan, began circling around him. As I moved he turned 

 and faced me, but after some time his brain grew dizzy with 

 the rapid revolutions, and, observing him wobble, I shielded 

 my face with my hat, rushed forward and captured him. 



How THEY Spit. 



Various are the theories in regard to the nature of the fluid, 

 and the manner in which it is ejected or " spat out " by the Ring- 

 hals, all of which are more or less incorrect. I have had excep- 

 tional opportunities for closely studying snakes and their habits, 

 having kept live snakes in captivity for many years in Natal, and 

 at the Port Elizabeth Museum. 



I have scores of times purposely irritated our captive Ringhals 

 snakes, and closely observed the manner in which they ejected 

 the fluid. The fluid is not saliva, as generally supposed, but pure 

 venom ejected in two streams from the poison fangs. When the 

 snake struck the glass in the act of spitting (see Fig. 80), the 

 venom was ejected from the fangs in two streams which ran 

 down the glass, but if a couple or more feet away, the venom 

 would be sprayed in a fine shower. This spraying of the venom 

 is accomplished by the expulsion of air from the lung sac, 

 simultaneously with the ejection of the venom from the fangs. 

 The air is expelled very forcibly, and is accompanied by a short 

 but loud hiss. The muscles which squeeze the glands are 

 specially modified for expelling the venom in smafl oft-repeated 

 jets, and the poison glands are unusually large. 



Rapid Secretion of Venom. 



The venom is evidently secreted at a very rapid rate when the 

 snake is enraged, for I observed that a large Black Ringhals dis- 

 charged five showers of venom within as many minutes. For the 

 first day or two of a Ringhals' captivity, it spits at every one who 

 approaches. A single snake covered a sheet of plate glass four 

 feet by four feet all over with venom in a day. 



The venom on exposure rapidly hardens, cracks irregularly, 

 and assumes a straw-yellow colour. When first ejected it is 

 almost colourless, and is of the consistency of glycerine. 



