THE SNARES OF BANGKOK. 175 



foliage among which they live, must be of the greatest value. They feed 

 chiefly upon lizards and small birds, killing the latter by constriction. 



Length. The largest specimen I have seen measured 1670 mm. 



f'olor (in life). Verdant green, paler below than above. A 

 yellow or white line at the outer border of the ventral shields. Throat 

 white. Interstitial skin in the fore part of the body, alternately white 

 and black. Tris golden yellow with horizontal pupil. The young have 

 generall}' two fairly distinct whitish lines down the middle of the bellj\ 



The identification of this snake is easy, the coloration, the 

 elongated head with the curious tip to the snout, and the horizontal 

 pupil, serving to distinguish it easily from the Green Pit Viper, the 

 only other entirely green snake that is found in Bangkok. 



Distribution. ]ndia, Ceylon, Burma, Siam. This species does 

 not extend into the jNIalay Peninsula and it would be interesting to 

 find out its most southern habitat in this country. 



3o. Chrysope^ea ornata. The Green and Blaclc Tree 



Snake. 



<S 



Siamese ^ IIIUQ {n<jit Ichieo). 



Very common in Bangkok, and, owing to its partiality for 

 living in houses, is the snake which is brought more into contact with 

 the residents of the town than any other kind. There is probably 

 hardly a house or office where it has not been met with at some time, 

 and one might safely say, that of every ten snakes encountered inside 

 dwelling places, eight of them would prove to be of this species. This 

 partiality for living in habitations is by no means universal, but 

 appears more especially to be a trait of Bangkokindividuals. Its 

 climbing powers are extraordinary and are shown at their best amongst 

 masonry. The special formation of its ventral shields greatly assists it 

 in these performances, and by taking advantage of every projection, 

 crack and corner available, it is enabled to scale perpendicular walls 

 and to reach positions apparently quite inaccessible. 



Chrijsopelea ornata is a bold and courageous snake, and, for its size^ 

 extremely powerful. Its habits are diurnal. It is a voracious feeder and 

 will, I believe, devour anything that it can overcome. Mice, birds, lizards 

 and frogs have all been recorded as forming part of its diet, but I do 

 not think that other snakes have vet been mentioned, fn the stomach 



