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A NEW HIMALAYAN SNAKE {LYCODON 

 MACKINX0N1). 



By Capt. F. Wall, i.m.s., o.m.z.s. 



{Read before the Bombay Natural History Society on bth October 1905.) 



J have lately received from Mr. P. W. Mackinnon a few snakes col- 

 lected by him in the neighbourhood of Mussoorie, among which is a 

 small snake of the genus Lyccdon hitherto undescribed. The specimen 

 was killed in his own garden at an altitude of 6,100 feet. 



Unfortunately, the specimen has been badly mutilated about the head. 

 With some difficulty I have managed to clean and repose the parts suffi- 

 ciently to make drawings which, though accurate, I believe, in the 

 actual relationship of the shields, are probably not quite so with regard 

 to the shape of the head. The following is a description of it : — 



Rostral, in contact with 6 shields, of which the nasal sutures are 

 the largest, and about twice the length of the internasals. Inter- 

 nasals, a pair. The suture between them subeqnal to that between 

 the prefrontal fellows ; less than the internaso-pr?efrontal suture. 

 Prefrontals, a pair. The suture between them subequal to the prse- 

 fronto-frontal suture. In contact with the internasals, nasals, 1st, 2nd 

 and 3rd supralabials, preeocular, supraocular and frontal. Frontal in 

 contact with 6 shields, of which the sutures are subequal. Supraoculars 

 are half the breadth and about two-thirds the length of the frontal. 

 Nasal whether divided or not uncertain ; in contact with only one supra- 

 labial (the first). Loreal absent. Prceocidar one- Eye with vertical 

 pupil. Postoculars two, subequal. Temporal two ; the lower in 

 contact by equal sutures with the 6th and 7th supralabials. Supra- 

 labials 8, with the 3rd, 4th and 5th touching the eye on the left side ; 

 7 with the 2nd, 3rd and 4th touching the eye on the right side (owing 

 to a confluence of the 1st and 2nd ? ). Anterior sublinguals subequal 

 to the posterior ; in contact with 5 infralabials. Posterior sublinguals 

 in contact with the 5th and 6th infralabials. Infralabials. The first 

 form a suture about § the length of the suture between the anterior 

 sublinguals ; the 5th and 6th are subequal and largest and the 6th pen- 

 tagonal, and in contact with 2 scales behind. Scales. Two heads lengths 

 behind the head 17 ; mid body 17 ; two heads lengths before the vent 

 15, At the step where the scales reduce from 17 to 15 behind the 

 middle of the body, this is effected by the blending of the 3rd and 4th 



