SNAKES OF CEYLON. 139 



nothing demonstrative in their attachment as far as I could 

 see at any time. Unfortunately the union was unfruitful, 

 due, I believe, to my moving north to the United Provinces 

 immediately after. The cold weather so far depressed the 

 natural vigour of a Macropisthodon plumbicolor I also took 

 from Bangalore with me, that a frog it swallowed remained 

 undigested for some weeks, and was subsequently disgorged, 

 and when the snake died five months and six days subsequently 

 to its capture, it was found to be gravid with the impregnated 

 follicles, but little enlarged, and much in the same state as the 

 impregnated follicles of the schistosus at death. 



(c) Method of Reproduction : The species is known to be 

 oviparous from a cluster of eggs which Tennent* refers to, 

 which was found near a river in Ceylon, and from which 

 twenty young snakes subsequently emerged. Abercromby 

 confirms this, and I can further support this testimony. 



(d) Season : The mating season appears to be during the 

 rains from the single dated observation available, which came 

 under my own notice. None of the four adult females I had 

 in Fyzabad were gravid, which points to the deposition of 

 eggs being already accomplished before August, unless mating 

 had up till then not been in progress. The latter possibility 

 is suggested by the pair found in copula in Bangalore, and 

 brought to me on August 27. Abercromby has reported a 

 captive specimen in Ceylon laying eggs on April 26. I had 

 two gravid females sent me from Bangalore with eggs in an 

 advanced state of development. It is almost certain these 

 were captured in November. I had a specimen from Bangalore 

 killed on December 9, 1919, with eggs in an advanced state 

 of development. On January 1, 1920, one in my vivarium 

 deposited eggs in Bangalore. 



(e) Period of Gestation: Not known. 

 (/) Period of Incubation : Not known. 



(g) Number in Clutch: I had a gravid specimen from Ceyloii 

 with 10 eggs. My impregnated female from Bangalore 

 contained 18 fertilized follicles, and three other egg-bound 



* Natural History of Ceylon, p. 308. 



