794 ON SERPENTS IN CAPTIVITY. [Nov. 1 2, 



alarm, others were nearly indifferent. The Old World monkeys 

 of all the genera in the Society's Collection recognised the snakes 

 instantly and bolted panic-stricken, chattering loudly and retreat- 

 ing to their boxes or as high up as possible in the larger cages. 

 Our large Baboons, including the huge Mandrill, were even more 

 panic-stricken, jumping back in the gi-eatest excitement, climbing 

 as far ovit of reach as possible and barking. Of the Anthropoids, 

 the Gibbons were least timid ; one small agile Gibbon i^IIapale 

 agilis) showed no fear and very little curiosity ; a larger one of the 

 same species and a Hoolock receded but without showing panic. 

 It is possible that the very markedly ai-boreal habits of the 

 Gibbons have brought them so much less in contact with snakes 

 that their fear of snakes is partly obliterated. The Chimpanzees, 

 except one baby which was indifferent, recognised the snakes 

 at once and fled backwards, uttering a low note sounding like 

 " huh, huh." They soon got moi-e excited and began to scream, 

 getting high vip on the branches or on the wire-work of their 

 cages, but all keeping their eyes fixed on the snakes. Apparently 

 they took a certain amount of coui-age from one another's 

 presence, and they began slowly to draw nearer chattering loudly, 

 but soon fled again screaming. The panic, however, at the pre- 

 sence of snakes was most sudden and best marked in the case of 

 Orangs. The Society has at present two examples — a young 

 female which came two years ago as a very small baby, and a 

 lai'ge, probably adult male. Both of these are usually extremely 

 slow and deliber-ate in their movement, but as soon as they got 

 sight of a snake and long before it was near them, they fled silently 

 but with the utmost rapidity, climbing as far out of reach as 

 possible with a ludicrous celerity. It is well known that Anthro- 

 poid Apes are timid animals, readily alarmed at any strange 

 creatures however small or harmless these may appear to be. 

 One of our Chimpanzees was infested with large nematodes, and 

 living examples of these that were passed with the fseces terrified 

 the others. Earthworms similarly alarmed them, but nematodes 

 and earthworms may have been mistaken by them for snakes. 

 But mice, cockroaches, and guinea-pigs sometimes also terrify 

 them extremely at first. We cannot doubt, however, that apart 

 from this general timidity, monkeys (excluding lemurs) have a 

 specific fear of snakes. It is probable that human beings have 

 inherited this specific fear of snakes from their anthropoid an- 

 cestors, and that our inclination to attribute a similar fear of 

 snakes to other animals is due not merely to erroneous observation 

 but to an " anthi^opoidomorphic " prepossession. 



