142 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



the beautiful Coral Snake or Chequered Elaps (E. lemniscatus) 

 being a striking example. Nor would a diametrically opposite 

 test hold good, as occasionally happens where popular theories 

 are in question. The majority of the Colubers are round-headed, 

 while all the Crotalidce are exceedingly flat and angular ; some 

 Vipers, as the River-jack ( Vipera rhinoceros), the Nose-horned 

 Viper ( V. nasicornis), and a species of Causus are flattened and 

 three-cornered as well, but slope with a curious sort of pyramidal 

 declension from the median line to the margin. Tbere are 

 flat-headed snakes and round-headed snakes of both kinds, but 

 between the extremes we find every possible gradation ; besides, 

 as we shall see presently, some are much flatter at times than 

 they usually are. 



Brilliancy of colour is accepted by many people as an 

 indication of the baneful character of the reptile, but this is 

 equally fallacious; indeed, though no approach to a rule can be 

 laid down, I think it is quite the other way in the greater 

 number of cases. Many deadly or dangerous serpents are 

 certainly of very brilliant hue ; the two African Vipers, above 

 quoted, the Curucucu or Bushmaster (Lachesis mutus), the Death- 

 adder (Pseudechis porphyriacvs) of Australia, and Blue Viper 

 {Bungarus lineatus) — so-called — of India, the Coral Snake, and 

 most of the others belonging to the Elajnda, may be cited as 

 examples. But there is nothing very gorgeous about the Cobra- 

 di-capello, or Hamadryad, or Carpet-viper ; while the large group 

 of Rattlesnakes, the Water-viper, Copper-head, Fer-de-lance, 

 Jararaca, Vibora-de-la-cruz, and other Crotalidce, have not a bright 

 tint amongst them. The Viper of the British Islands varies from 

 dull brown to black. Then look at the vast number of innocuous 

 species which present almost every colour of the rainbow in 

 all degrees of intensity. What can rival the vivid green of 

 Philodryas viridissimus, the blood-red upper surface of Scytale 

 coronatum, or the vermilion, yellow, white, and black of Oxyrhopus 

 formosus, trigeminus, doliatus, and ftetolarius ? or the variegated 

 pattern of Pelophilus Madagascar ensis, or even the Common Boa, 

 which Laurenti named Constrictor formosissimus 2 Hundreds of 

 other specimens might be instanced. Some — such as D'Orbigny's 

 Heterodon — tLve dark on the back, but beautifully marked under- 

 neath ; others again, though uniformly dark in tint, glow with a 

 most brilliant metallic lustre, as the plumbeous and pointed 



