SNAKES OF CEYLON. 431 



Indian Coasts, driven thence, perhaps, by storm or strong 

 currents. It is apparently a rare visitor also to seas much 

 further East, since Flower, in his Reptiles of the Malay Penin- 

 sula and Siam, mentions but one record, viz., from Chantaboon, 

 Siam. It is not included in the collection made by Annandale 

 and Robinson from the Malay Peninsula (Boulenger, Fasc. 

 Malayensis, October, 1903), and in Boulenger's Fauna of the 

 Malay Peninsula (Rept. and Batrach., 1912, p. 196) the author 

 does not include it in the list. 



Its usual habitat is evidently the Loo Choo Archipelago, 

 Formosa, and the Philippines, and in these waters it is fairly 

 abundant. 



Laticauda colubrina (Schneider). 



(Latin, implying " like a coluber.") 



Schneider's Sea Krait. 



Synoymy. — Coluber laticaudatus, Hydrus coluhrinus, Lati- 

 cauda scutata, Platurus scutatus, P. fasciatus, P. laticaudatus. 



History. — First referred to by Linne in 1766, who confused 

 it with the last species laiicaudata. Schneider in 1799 

 realized the difference between the two species, and his name 

 for it is retained. 



General Characters. — A snake of fair proportions reaching 

 4 ieet in length. Commissure of mouth not turned up behind. 



Identification.— The rostral touching six shields, and the 

 scales in from 21 to 25 rows two heads-lengths behind the 

 head, and 21 to 25 rows in midbody and posteriorly will 

 declare the species. It is also the only Indian hydrophid 

 with the frontal touching seven shields. 



Colouration. — Dull bluish-gray, with from 25 to 50 very 

 deep brown annuli round the body, and 4 to 5 round the tail. 

 The bands are about as broad or broader than the interspaces, 

 well defined and discrete vertebrally and ventrally. As age 



