340 



ORDERS OF REPTILES— SERPENTS 



flicting a wound, nor of conveying poison into 

 the blood of another creature. 



Snakes never are "slimy." 



Removing the fangs of a poisonous serpent 

 does not necessarily render it harmless; for new 

 fangs promptly grow out to take the place of 

 those removed. 



The rattle of the rattlesnake contains more 

 than one joint for each year of life, — usually two 

 or three. 



THE LARGEST SPECIES OF SERPENTS. 



Family Boidae. 



The Family Bo'i-dae, containing the boas, ana- 

 condas and pythons, embraces between sixty and 

 seventy species. 



It is as natural for human interest in ani- 



before swallowing it, are constrictors, because of 

 their method; but all big serpents are not nec- 

 essarily Boa constrictors. That title applies to 

 but a single species, found in South America; 

 and, curiously enough, its Latin name is also its 

 popular name. 



In seizing its prey, this serpent instantly 

 reveals its name by its method. The jaws open 

 widely, fly forward with electric quickness, close 

 on the animal, and hold fast. Instantly there- 

 after, a coil of the body near the head is flung 

 completely around the victim and drawn tight, 

 to suppress struggling, and prevent possible 

 escape from the jaws. From the oldest and 

 largest to the youngest and smallest Boa Con- 

 strictors, all seize their prey with precisely the 

 same action, and the flinging of the first coil fol- 



New York Zoological Park. 



BOA CONSTRICTOR. 



mals to be greatest toward those that are the 

 largest of their kind, as it is for sparks to i\y 

 upward. It is well to see what Nature can do 

 when she puts forth her best efforts. No one 

 need apologize for a keen interest in pythons, 

 boas and anacondas, provided that interest is 

 kept down to bed-rock truth, and all exaggera- 

 tions and overestimates are rigidly eliminated. 

 Unfortunately, however, the makers of sensa- 

 tions about wild animals regard all large serpents 

 as their lawful prey, and often stretch them un- 

 mercifully. 



The Boa Constrictor. — The serpents which 

 seize their prey, and crush it into compact shape 



lows so quickly after the strike of the jaws that 

 the two acts seem almost simultaneous. 



The Boa Constrictor is much smaller than its 

 neighbor, the anaconda, and not more than one- 

 half the size of the gigantic reticulated python of 

 the East Indies. Its maximum length is about 

 12 feet. It inhabits South America, from the 

 Caribbean Sea to Paraguay, but only in forested 

 regions, where animal food is plentiful, and cover 

 for concealment is abundant. This species is 

 readily recognized by its bright, reddish-brown 

 tail, which is much more highly colored than the 

 head and body. It is also marked by the prev- 

 alence of reddish, iron-rust brown in its color- 



