SNAKES OF CEYLON. 251 



Costals : Longer than broad, rectiform, smooth, with no 

 apical facets or pits. Vertebrals not enlarged. Ultimate row 

 enlarged. In 13 to 17 rows at midbody. Ventrals : Rounded. 

 Anal : Entire or divided. Supracaudals : In even rows. 

 Subcaudals : Divided. 



Dentition. — Maxillary, Syncranterian, anododont, isodont. 

 Palatine : Anododont, isodont. Pterygoid : Anododont, iso- 

 dont. Mandibular : Anododont, feebly kumatodont. 



Distribution. — South Asia. Japan. 



Ablabes calamaria Gunther. 



(Latin " calamus " a pen.) 

 Gunther' s Reed Snake.* 



Synonymy — Oyclophis calamaria, C. nasalis, Homalosoma 

 baliolum. 



History. — Described by Gunther in 1858. 



General Characters. — A little snake hardly reaching IS 

 inches in its adult state. Head little depressed. Snout 

 moderate in length, obtusely rounded terminally, without 

 canthus. Eye moderate in size. Nostril pierced in a single 

 elongate nasal shield. Neck hardly evident. Body slender, 

 cylindrical, of even calibre throughout. Belly rounded. 

 Tail about one quarter the total length, ending in an extremely 

 fine point. It was doubtless this observation that caused 

 Gunther to attach the name calamaria to it. 



Identification. — The costals in 15 rows in the whole body 

 length, taken with the very long entire nasal shield (as long 

 or longer than the diameter of the eye) will establish its 

 identity. 



Colouration. — Dorsally olive -green, usually with a fine 

 blackish line along the confines of the 5th and 6th rows above 

 the ventrals. This line breaks up into spots anteriorly and 

 continues well on to the tail. A less distinct but similar line 

 runs along the confines of the 3rd and 4th rows. An ill-defined 

 but distinct dark patch is seen on the parietal region in some 



* In my article on the Nilgiri snakes (Bombay Nat. Hist. Jour., 

 Vol. XXVI., p. 569) I called it the " Western reed snake," overlooking 

 the fact that it occurs in the Western Himalayas. 



