SNAKES OE CEYLON. 395 



Costals : Longer than broad and imbricate in the cylin- 

 drical part of the body ; about as broad as long, hexagonal, 

 and juxtaposed in the compressed posterior part, with a 

 short keel occupying about the median two -fourths of each 

 scale. In 27 to 34 rows two heads -lengths behind the head ; 

 39 to 50 in midbody ; and 35 to 45 two heads -lengths before 

 the Vent. Ventrals : 235 to 276 ; entire and imbricate 

 throughout ; about four times as broad as the last costals for 

 a short length anteriorly, nearly twice as broad as the last 

 costal rows elsewhere. 



(b) Anomalies — Prefrontals : I have seen this in contact 

 with the 2nd supralabial on one side in two specimens. Prse- 

 oculars : When the third supralabial is divided a spurious 

 lower prseocular is established. Postoculars : The divided 

 fifth labial sometimes creates a spurious lower shield. Sub- 

 linguals : The fellows of the posterior pair are frequently 

 quite separated. Cuneate ; Sometimes two after the 3rd 

 supralabial. 



Dentition. — Detailed under the genus. 



Distribution. — (a) General: From the Persian Gulf to 

 South China ; Malayan Archipelago as far East as Java. 

 Boulenger does not include it in his snakes of the Malay 

 Peninsula. 



(b) Local : I have examined about thirty specimens. It 

 is rare in the Persian Gulf. There is one specimen in the 

 British Museum from Muscat, and one in the Indian Museum 

 from the same port. There is one in the Bombay Natural 

 History Society's collection from Karachi, and another from 

 Karwar, and the British Museum collection has one from 

 Malabar. It is not represented in the Trivandrum Museum. 

 There was no specimen in the Colombo Museum when I 

 examined the collection, and there is no record from Ceylon. 

 It is rare on the southern Coromandel Coast. Dr. Henderson 

 sent me two from Madras, and a third from the same locality 

 is in the British 'Museum. Further North, however, it is not 

 an uncommon species. There are no less than twelve speci- 

 mens in the Indian Museum from Puri, and one in the Bombay 



56 6(6)20 



