1862.] LETTER FROM DR. J. SHORTT. 251 



ft. iu. tcnthii. 



Length of foot from the tip of the middle claw 



to that of the hind toe 3 5 



. of the large or middle toe 2 



• of wing from shoulder to end of largest 



primary quill 10 



Depth of wing 4 2 



Circumference over the crown of the head and 



round the region of the eyes 5 



Length of cere 2 



Depth 1 



Length of bill I 2 " 



Sir Robert Schomburgk added that Crawfurd's drawing of the 

 male bird alluded to by Mr. Gould in his account of this bird in 

 the ' Birds of Asia,' " although stiff, was otherwise good," and that 

 the habitat of this Pheasant was now fully ascertained to be the Shan 

 States to the east of Kieng-mai, at Muang Nan, Muang Phi, &c. 



The following letter, addressed to the Secretary by Dr. J. Shortt, 

 F.Z.S., dated Chingleput, 9th August, 1862, Avas read to the meet- 

 ing :— 



" Sir, — I have much pleasure in sending you a short account of 

 the Viper Baboia elegans (^Vipera russellii) — the Tamil name 

 being ' Kunuadi Vyrien,' or ' Kuturee Pamhoo.' 



" iSince sending you the skin, with skull entire, I have succeeded in 

 procuring several specimens, alive and dead, both here and on the 

 Shervaroy Hills, during a recent stay there of two months. The 

 largest specimen in my collection at present measures 5 feet in length, 

 and 7 inches in circumference at the thickest part of its body. Its 

 head is large, elongate, depressed, rounded on the sides, and covered 

 with acutely and regularly-keeled scales ; nostrils large, subsupe- 

 rior, anterior, and in the centre of a ring-like shield, edged with 

 a large scale above ; e3^es convex, pupil round ; nasal shield smooth 

 in front ; supercihary shield narrow, elongate, and distinct in front ; 

 jaws weak, upper toothless, with large, slightly curved, double fangs ; 

 lower jaw toothed ; tongue long and forked : colour broAvn, with three 

 rows of oblong (in the young, circular or oval) white-edged brown 

 spots ; two brown spots on each side of the occiput, separated by a 

 narrow, oblique, yellow temporal streak. Scuta 168, subcaudals 52. 



" From the three rows of white-edged spots being linked to each 

 other, it is commonly called the Chain Viper. The Tamil name of 

 • Kunuadi Vyrien ' literally means Glass Viper ; that of ' Kuturee 

 Pamhoo,' Scissors Snake. This name it receives from having double 

 fangs, which are invariably present, of equal length, if not on both, 

 on one side at least : these the natives of Southern India fancy re- 

 semble a pair of scissors. 



" It is very common in these parts, and also at an elevation of 

 4800 feet above the sea (Shervaroy Hills) : at the latter place I 

 procured two specimens ; the largest measured A\, and the other. 



