390 SNAKES OF CEYLON. 



(6) Local: There are two specimens in the Bombay Natural 

 History Society's collection, but evidence that these are from 

 the Malabar Coast is lacking. Ferguson mentions a specimen 

 from Trivandrum. There were two specimens in the Colombo 

 Museum of local origin. It is a rather uncommon snake in 

 the vicinity of Madras. What I take to be Russell's type is 

 from Tranquebar. It is uncommon on the Coromandel Coast 

 as far North as Puri. I failed to get one from Burma, and 

 can find no records from this coast. Several specimens in 

 the Indian Museum are from the region of Mergui. Cantor, 

 the Skeat Expedition, and Annandale and Robinson obtained 

 it from the coasts around the Malayan Peninsula, and Dr. 

 Malcolm-Smith sent me four juvenile specimens from the 

 coasts of Siam. 



I have examined about thirty specimens. 



Genus PRJiSCUTATA, 



(Latin " pras " in front, " scuta " a shield, refers to the 

 unusually well-developed anterior ventrals.) 



General Characters. — Length moderate. Habit robust. 

 Body anteriorly moderately attenuated, the diameter being 

 about half that of the extreme depth posteriorly. 



Cranial Osteological Characters.— i^^asafo .• Sutured to prae- 



frontals and frontal, as long as the frontal. Prxfrontals : 

 Not meeting parietal, meeting postfrontals. Frontal : 

 Broader than long, meeting postfrontal at rim of orbit. 

 Parietal : Keeled inferiorly. Quadrate : Oblique from above 

 backwards, extreme length superiorly half its depth. Maxilla : 

 not extending beyond palatine anteriorly, extending beyond 

 palatine posteriorly. 



Dentition, — From one skull in my collection. Maxillary : 

 Postnoda], 4 to 5 ; * feebly scaphiodont. Palatine : 7 ; 

 anododont, isodont ; curving outwards anteriorly ; with a 



I have examined these in many specimens. 



