40 SNAKES OF CEYLON. 



(b) Local : Mr. Drummond-Hay tells me it is a common 

 snake in the low hills of the Balangoda, Ratnagiri, and Yatiyan- 

 tota Districts below about 3,000 feet. All the specimens in 

 the Colombo Museum (twenty -three) labelled trevelyanus, 

 except one, proved to be R. planiceps. 



Rhinophis blythi Kelaart. 

 (Named in honour of Mr. Blyth.) 



Blytlvs Rhinophis {or Earth Snake). 



Synonymy. — Mytilia templetoni . 



History. — Described and christened by Kelaart in 1853. 



General Characters.— A small snake growing to about 

 14 inches. Head small. Snout acute, not keeled above. 

 Eye less than half the horizontal diameter of the ocular shield . 

 Body short ; its diameter at midbody about one twenty -second 

 to one thirty-second the total length. Tail short. 



Identification. — The caudal shield much shorter than the. 

 shielded part of the head, with ventrals ranging between 148 

 and 168 will differentiate this from its allies. 



Colouration. — Head blackish-brown above, with a more or 

 less distinct, narrow, white V with its apex on the rostral, and 

 the limbs confluent with a vertical, Avhite, lateral spot on the 

 neck. Body blackish-brown above, with a series of whitish, 

 vertical, or sub-triangular, lateral spots most conspicuous 

 anteriorly, the most anterior sometimes meeting over the 

 neck. These are sometimes confluent to form an irregular 

 lateral stripe. Belly dappled with blackish -brown and white, 

 many scales being margined with white. Anal region whitish. 

 Tail with a basal white band incomplete dorsally. 



Habits. — Lives like the other species beneath the soil. 

 Very inoffensive, never attempting to bite. 



Food. — Those I have investigated had eaten nothing but 

 earthworms. It seems to feed voraciously on this fare, and 

 the intestines in consequence are found loaded with semi- 

 liquid mud. 



