POISONOUS SNAEES. 11 



Xe^nirelaps bungaroides, founded on a single specimen received 

 from the Khiisj-a hills (north of iSylhet) ; and the Merjcerophis 

 Jiaviceps, which inhabits the Indo-Chinese and the Mala3-an 

 countries, but not India. The latter attains to more than six feet 

 in length, and when alive or fresh the head and neck are yixiA. 

 blood-red, which soon fades to a pale buff hue in specimens im- 

 mersed in spirit, and hence the faulty name oi Jiaviceps. As 

 many as seven genera — Glyphodon, with two ascertained species; 

 Diemansia, with four ; Hoplocephalus, with eight ; Pseudedds, with 

 one; Fseudo-naja, yfiXh one; Braclnjsoma, with three; and Ver- 

 micaUa, with one — are peculiar to Australia with Tasmania, making 

 twenty known species of Colubriforni Venemous Snakes in that 

 range of territory, where others doubtless remain to be discovered ; 

 and there is one described as Pseudo-elaps supercUiaris, which is 

 suspected to be a second species of Pseudo-naja. The CyrtopJds 

 scutatus of South Africa is a sort of hoodless Cobra, without any 

 small teeth behind its fangs. In America there is only the genus 

 Elaps, with numeious species, which are mostly of small size, and 

 in some instances are verj^ brightly coloured, as one of the Coral 

 Snakes* of Brazil {E. corallinus), which is beautiful coral-red, 

 with the body encircled b}^ equidistant black rings. The genus 

 Elaps in America is represented in Africa by Ilomorelaps, in the 

 Indian region by Callo/jkis, and in Australia by Vermkalla. In 

 general, these are small and slender Snakes, too much so to be 

 held in much dread. What Dr. Gunther remarks of the species 

 of Calloplds will apply, as we believe, equally to the others :— 

 " They appear to prefer hilly countries to the plains, live con- 

 stantljr on the ground, and are slow in their movements. In their 

 habits, in their form, and in their powerless muscular organization, 

 they show the greatest similarity to the Calamarim ; and this is 

 why the Callop/ddes feed almost entirely on the latter, the venemous 

 Snake being able to overpower the non-venemous. Both of these 

 genera have also the same geographical distribution ; and Ceylon, 

 where we do not find the Calamaria, is not inhabited by a sinofe 

 Calloplds. If we are allowed to judge from the number of indi- 

 viduals of both genera brought to Europe in collections, the 

 Calamarioi are about twice as numerous as the Calloplddes." 



* This name being alao applied to the harmless Tortrix scytale [vide p. 46.) 



