74 SNAKES OF CBYLOISr. 



Family XENOPELTID/E. 



Distribution. — Burma, Indo-China, Malay Peninsula, and 

 Archipelago as far East as Java. 



Represented by a single genus which contains but one 

 species. 



Not found in Ceylon. 



Family COLUBRID/E. 



(Named from the type genus Coluber.) 



General Characters. — Head small or moderate, narrow, 

 moderate or broad. Snout short, moderate, or long, with or 

 without canthus, pointed, narrowly or broadly obtuse. Eye 

 small, moderate, or large, A^ith round vertical or horizontal 

 pupil. Nostril small, moderate, or large ; open or valvular ; 

 lateral or superior. Neck not, sUghtly, or markedly con- 

 stricted- Body cylindrical, compressed or depressed, slender, 

 moderate, or robust- Belly rounded, angulate, or keeled. 

 Tail short, moderate, or long ; cylindrical, sUghtly or highly 

 compressed. 



Habits. — -Terrestrial, arboreal, subaquatic, fluviatile, lacus- 

 trine, or marine. Active. 



Food. — Mammals, birds, reptiles, batrachians, fishes; avine, 

 reptilian, and batrachian eggs; worms. 



Breeding. — Oviparous or viviparous. 



Poison. — The majority are not poisonous, many ai-e 

 poisonous, and of these some very fatal to man. 



Lepidosis. — The head is covered A\'ith large shields of a 

 form and disposition peculiar to the family, except in 

 Cher sydr lis- 



