( 61 ) 



ON THE TREATMENT OF SNAKES IN CAPTIVITY. 



By Arthur Stradling, C.M.Z.S. 



(Continued from p. 24.) 



The tank and water-supply are of greater importance still. 

 Nearly all snakes love to drink and bathe frequently, often 

 lying in the bath for days together, while some (such as the 

 Anaconda) spend more time in the water than out of it. This 

 habit is more noticeable among big serpents as a class than 

 among small ones. The tank, therefore, should be roomy, so 

 that the largest specimen may be able to get bodily into it 

 with comfort ; it should be placed at the extreme back of the 

 cage, leaving no interval between it and the hinder wall; the 

 bottom must not be sunk below the level of the floor ; and it will 

 be a great advantage to have the front of it made of glass. Then 

 the reptiles are never hidden, no matter how deep the tank may 

 be — and a tolerable depth ought to be allowed, certainly not less 

 than a foot clear, to permit of a sufficiency of water at all times, 

 without overflow when the snake's bulk is submerged ; their 

 behaviour in that situation, interesting in many ways, can be 

 observed likewise. Here, too, the glass must be thick; it may be 

 set, for ornamental appearance, in a frame of rough wood or 

 (better) stone. If a lid for this tank can be contrived, either to 

 slide in from the outside through a thin slit in the end, or hinged 

 at the back and worked by a pulley from above, it may be 

 serviceable to separate the occupants at feeding-time, or to shut 

 in a mischievous customer while cleaning out the cage. Soft 

 water is best for them, and ought to be made tepid by lying in a 

 cistern placed upon some part of the heating apparatus before it 

 is admitted. One of the greatest defects of the old reptile-house 

 at the Eegent's Park Gardens is the want of means for warmino- 

 the water outside the cages ; it flows in cold, and remains some 

 time before it is raised to a proper temperature, since it receives 

 heat only from the general surroundings. The disadvantages of 

 such a state of affairs are numerous. Snakes at a high tem- 

 perature plunge suddenly in, and are not only thereby often 

 induced to regurgitate their food, but may take a fatal chill, 

 especially if on the point of shedding their skins ; or they may 

 become so numbed and paralysed as to lie there and die. The 



