756 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL JUST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXII. 



mark is not usuallj^ so sagittate as represented. Figure 1 (ft) shows 

 the somewhat nnnsual ventral maculation. 



8IM0TES ALBOCIKGTUS (Cantor.) 

 The Ladder Back or Light-barred Kukri Snake. 



History. — Dr. Cantor is responsible for our first introduction to 

 this snake, which he described in the year 1839. It has been 

 confused with several others of the same genus by past authors, 

 partly on account of the great similarity in lepidosis shown by 

 many of the allied forms, and partly owing to the great vaiiability 

 in the colour and markings of many individuals of what are still 

 held to be but one species. Blyth in 1854 remarked on the 

 variability of this species, but as he refers to specimens from 

 Southern India and Ceylon, we may presume that arnensis was at 

 least one of the forms to which he alluded. Even, as late as 1894, 

 Mr. Boulenger recognised these varieties in his Catalogiie. One of 

 these, viz., Var C, I think, I have shown in (Vol. XX of this Journal, 

 p. 162), is entitled to rank as a distinct species which I have named 

 juglandifer. Besides the very distinctive dorsal marks shaped like 

 walnut kernels, or the quadruple spots placed crosswise and the 

 complete absence of light bars, such as are seen in alhocinctus it 

 shows a short edentulous space in front of the palatine, that does 

 not occur in alhocinctus. 



Nomenclature — (a) Scientific. — The specific name is derived from 

 the Latin " albus," white, and " cinctus," a belt, but is not 

 altogether satisfactory, as the marks referred to are dorsal bars and 

 not belts. 



^English. — The regularity of the bars on the back, and their 

 wonderful uniformity in spacing remind one of a ladder and 

 suggested the name " ladder back," but perhaps the "light-barred 

 kukri snake" may appeal more to some. 



Vernacular. — The only name I am acquainted with is " sar-vul- 

 saw " which Captain Venning (Vol. XX, p. 335 of this Journal) 

 tells us is applied by the natives in the Chin Hills, Upper Burma, 

 to this as well as to the snakes Coluber jporijJiyraceus, and Gallo2?his 

 macclellandi, all by the way reddish snakes. 



Identification. — Attention must be directed to the sutures be- 

 tween the internasal and prsefrontal fellows, to which I have already 

 referred in discussing the identification of arnensis. The following 

 combination of characters will separate the " ladder back " from 

 other kukri snakes except juglandifer : — (1) Costals 19 in midbody, 

 (2) anal entire, (3) a single temporal. The bars across the back 

 of alhocinctus are very distinctive, and no trace of them is to be 

 seen in juglandifer . 



General characters. — The body is cylindrical, smooth, stout, and 



