Yg SNAKES OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS 



I obtained a specimen on Bongao Island, Sulu Archipelago. This 

 specimen is of a dark slate or bluish slate color ; otherwise it 

 agrees fairly well with the Palawan specimens. It is known in 

 the Philippines from these two localities only. Outside of the 

 Philippines it is known from India, Burma, Siam, Malay Pe- 

 ninsula, Nias, Borneo, Celebes, Sumatra, and Java. In the Phil- 

 ippines it is rare, as it is said to be in Java also."' 



NATRICID^ 



"Facial bones movable; prasfrontal not in contact with nasal; 

 transpalatine present ; pterygoid extending to mandible or quad- 

 rate; supratemporal present, attached scale-like to the skull and 

 suspending quadrate; maxillary horizontal, not movable per- 

 pendicularly to the transpalatine. Mandible without coronoid 

 bone. Both jaws toothed." iBoulenger.)j 



The family is divided into the following subfamilies: Acro- 

 chordinse, Natricinas, Rachiodontinffi, Homalopsinse, Coronellina;, 

 Boiginte, Elachistodontinte, and Langahinje. Representatives of 

 six of these subfamilies are to be found in the Philippines, and 

 they may be distinguished as follows : 



Key to the Philippine subfamilies of the Matricide. 



a\ Hypapophyses present throughout the vertebral column, 

 ft'. All maxillary teeth solid. 



c\ Postf rental bone produced over the supraorbital region; scales not 



or but .slightly imbricate Acrochordins (p. 76). 



C-. Postf rontal bone not produced over the supraorbital region; scales 



imbricate - - - - Natricins (p. 78). 



b-. Posterior maxillary teeth grooved. 



c\ Nostrils valvular, on upper side of snout Homalopsinse (p. 110). 



c"-. Nostrils not valved, lateral Langahinas (p. 116). 



o.^ Hypapophyses absent in posterior dorsal vertebra. 



6\ All maxillary teeth solid --.- Coronellin^ (p. 117). 



b'. Posterior maxillary teeth grooved .. Boiginas (p. 195). 



The Natricinse and the Coronellinae constitute the bulk of the 

 harmless Philippine snakes. The two subfamilies together are 

 equivalent to Boulenger's family Colubridse. 



/VCROCHORDIN.-E 



Acrochordiiue Boulenger, Fauna Brit. India, Rept. (1890) 354; Cat. 

 Snakes Brit. Mus. 1 (1893) 172. 



"Postfrontal bone produced over the supraorbital region. 

 Maxillary and dentary bones armed with solid teeth along their 



* Barbour, loc. cit.; Schlegel, loc. cit. 



t Boulenger's definition of the Colubrid», from Cat. Snakes Brit. Mus. 

 1 (1893) 169. 



