THE SNAKES £79 



The anatomy of the poison apparatus is reversed from 

 that of the other kinds of venomous snakes, the fangs 

 being furrowed or grooved instead of caniculated, while 

 they are in the extreme rear of the upper jaw. The 

 pair of poison glands is situated in the labial region, 

 independent of the suprelabial gland and immediately 

 above the fang, not occupying the temporal region, as 

 is the case of the Elapine and Viperine snakes. Opis- 

 thoglyph snakes may have one or several pairs of fangs. 

 Boulenger believes them to connect the Colubrine and 

 Viperine serpents, the highly specialized venom appa- 

 ratus of the latter seeming to have been derived from 

 that of the Opisthoglypha by the reduction of the for- 

 ward portion of the maxillary bones and subsequent 

 loss of the small solid teeth, this bringing the venom 

 fangs to the front; during the process the fangs have 

 closed about the furrows, becoming perfectly canicu- 

 lated — like hypodermic needles. 



To imbed its fangs, an Opisthoglyph snake must 

 advance its jaws in a series of chewing motions; when 

 the fangs are brought into play, the jaws grip hard. 

 The retained hold enables the poison to flow down the 

 furrow of the tooth and well into the wound. Thus it 

 may be understood why such snakes are not well able 

 to inflict a dangerous bite unless they grip hard with 

 the jaws. The Elapine and Viperine snakes may 

 "strike" — bite rapidly — and during the manoeuvre the 

 fangs, entering the flesh, discharge the poison from 

 the orifice at their tip, leaving the fluid deeply imbedded. 

 By deliberately biting their prey, the Opisthoglyph 

 snakes kill the quarry in significantly quick fashion, 

 even with neater dispatch than some of the vipers. The 

 venom seems to act entirely upon the nerves, be- 

 numbing the victim. An Opisthoglyph snake can kill 



