686 ME. STANLEY S. FLOWBE ON THE [May 16, 



Series Proteroglypha. 



Subfamily HtdeophiinjE. 



Sea-snakes abound in the Straits of Malacca, in the China Sea, 

 and in the Gulf of Siam ; those which frequent estuaries are caught 

 from time to time in fishing-stakes, but we know very little of 

 those which frequent the open sea. I find in my diary frequent 

 references to seeing them ; two such will suffice here : — " 21.9.97. 

 Off Borneo, approaching Labuan, in the afternoon from about 

 4 to 6 p.m. we saw many scores of sea-snakes. Every few minutes 

 the steamer passed one, and sometimes there were two or three 

 vidthin a few yards of each other ; most were from one to two feet 

 long, the largest perhaps as much as four feet. Judging from the 

 colours, they were several different species. The extreme brilliancy 

 of the colouring of some was very beautiful and remarkable ; some 

 were almost entirely rich-golden yellow, others lemon-yellow ; 

 most had dark transverse bands of black or brown ; some M^ere 

 green, banded alternately darker and lighter." " 3.5.98. Grulf of 

 Siam. Duriug the afternoon saw six sea-snakes, all apparently of 

 the same species ; size small ; colour yellowish olive. They did 

 not seem aware of the steamer's approach till her bows were a 

 few yards from them ; then the snakes tried hard to swim away, 

 wrigghng on the surface, partly in and partly out of the water, 

 but were of course quickly overtaken, and as soon as the spray 

 from the steamer's fore-foot reached them they dived vertically 

 downward." 



183. Hydeijs platuetjs (L.). 



Hydms hicolor, Cantor, p. 135 (also pelamis, Cantor, p. 136 ?). 



Pelamis hicolor, Blanford, P. Z. S. 1881, p. 215. 



Hydrus platurus, Blgr. Cat. Snakes, iii. p. 267. 



Cantor obtained " a single individual taken in a fishing-stake off 

 the coast of Province Wellesley," and it is recorded from Singapore 

 by Blanford and by Hanitsch (Eep. Eaffles Libr. & Mus. 1897, 

 p. 10). The British Museum Catalogue mentions specimens from 

 " Siam " and the « Gulf of Siam." 



Hah. Obok, Ked Sea (Blgr. A. M. N. H. April 1897, p. 468), 

 Indian Ocean, Straits of Malacca, the Tropical and Subtropical 

 Pacific from the Loo Choo Islands to Australia and New Zealand, 

 and from the Malay Archipelago to Central America. 



184. Hydeophis c^eulesoens (Shaw). 

 HydropTiis ccerulescens, Blgr. Cat. Snakes, iii. p. 275. 

 Hah. Bombay Coast, Bay of Bengal, Straits of Malacca. 



185. Hydeophis nigeocinctus Daud. 

 Hydrojphis nigrocinctus, Blgr. Cat. Snakes, iii. p. 277. 

 Hah. Bay of Bengal and Straits of Malacca. 



