MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 693 



No. XLI.— BREEDING OF MACCLELLAND'S COEAL SNAKE 

 ( CALL OF HIS MA C CLELLANDI) . 



Among 128 snakes sent me from Shillong this year, I have had four 

 specimens of Macclelland's coral snake. I can find no observations of 

 the breeding habits of this species, so that the receipt of a gravid 5 i^ 

 worthy of remark. This specimen, which was killed in August, measures 

 1 foot 11 inches. It contained 6 eggs, 2 in one ovary and 4 in the other. 

 The largest of these eggs measures l^" x fg-''. On cutting this open I 

 discovered a small embryo lying in a chamber just beneath the ovicular 

 membrane. The embryo would, I judge, measure one to one-and-a-half 

 inches unravelled. The he id is formed, the eye, mandible, and a beaked 

 snout evident, and the heart also visible outside the abdomen. The 

 condition is exactly similar to that seen in the eggs taken from the 

 abdomen of the Lachesis Qiionticola included in the same collection. It 

 seems to me probable that these eggs were on the eve of being discharged,, 

 but on this point I cannot of course speak with certainty. 



F. WALL, Major, i.m.s., c.m.z.s. 

 AiiMOEA, 31si August 1911. 



No. XLII.— THE MADRAS AQUARIUM. 



A most interesting little guide* to the Madras Aquarium has just been 

 published by Dr. J. R. Henderson, the Honorary Director. This guide 

 contains not only a general account of the Aquarium and of the fish usually 

 to be seen in it but also a number of interesting observations on the habits 

 of fish and marine reptiles that are liable to escape notice unless attention 

 is called to thsm. I have therefore gathered together some of them in the 

 following notes, which I hope that Dr. Henderson will see his way to 

 elaborate : — 



1. "Finally it may be remarked that among some of the inmates of the 

 Aquarium the colours fade after a time. This is particularly noticeable 

 with regard to the beautiful red bands of Lutianus sebce " (p. 7). 



I have noticed myself that certain silvery freshwater fish {e.(/., NotopUrus 

 kapivat) turn black after a few weeks' exposure in an aquarium ; Dr. 

 Henderson's remarks apply, of course, to marine species. 



2. " The sea-snakes are usually represented by Enlnjdrina valahadien. 

 which is very common on the Madras Coast, but various species of Ilydro- 

 phis and Distira will be found from time to time. In spite of their 

 extremeljr poisonous nature, they rarely inflict injury on the fish living in 

 the same tank, yet more than once sea-snakes have fallen victims to and 

 been eaten by the latter. The snakes are fed on small dead fish " (p. 8). 



* Guide to the Marine Aquarkim, Madras. Printed by the Superintendent, 

 Government Press,. Price 1 anna. 



