SNAKES OF CEYLON. 349 



Gunther's brookii from Borneo; Bleeker's two specimens 

 labelled "Malay Archipelago/ ' with no exact locality specified ; 

 and the type of Gray's Undsayi from China. Its favoured 

 haunt is, therefore, between Madras and Calcutta. I have 

 examined over forty specimens. 



Genus LIOSELASMA. 



(Greek " leios " smooth, " selas " bright.) 



General Characters. — Length moderate to long. Body 

 moderately attenuated anteriorly, the diameter about two- 

 fifths to one-third the extreme depth posteriorly. 



Cranial Osteological Characters. —Nasals : Sutured to pre- 

 frontals and frontal ; longer than frontal. Prefrontals : 

 Meeting parietal and pcstfrontals. Frontal : As broad as 

 long ; not meeting postfrontal at rim of orbit. Parietal : 

 Not or but feebly keeled inferiorly. Quadrate : Oblique 

 from above backwards ; extreme length superiorly three- 

 fourths to four-fifths its depth. Maxilla : Not extending 

 beyond palatine anteriorly; extending beyond, palatine 

 posteriorly. 



Dentition. — From three species. Maxillary : Postnodal, 

 6 to 10 ; isodont. Palatine : 5 to 9 ; anododont, isodont ; no 

 edentulous space posteriorly. Pterygoid : 12 to 21 ; anodo- 

 dont, isodont, or feebly scaphiodont ; posterior two-fifths 

 edentulous. Mandibular : 13 to 20 ; anododont, feebly 

 scaphiodont. 



There are four species, viz., spiralis, cyanocincta, bituber- 

 culata, and mamillaris. 



LlOSELASMA MAMILLARIS (Daudin). 



(Latin " mamilla " a breast. The small central tubercle on 

 each scale reminds one of the nipple on a breast.) 



The Broad Banded Seasnake. 



Telugu: '"tatta pam " (Russell), should be " thatta pam " 

 (flat snake). 



Synonymy. — Anguis mamillaris, Hydrophis fasciata. 



