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Family X.— AMBLYCEPHALID^. 

 Body and tail slender, strongly compressed ; head thick 

 large, very distinct. Eye moderate with vertical pupil. 

 Nostril in a single nasal ; rostral very high. Head-shields 

 often increased above the normal number. Cleft of the 

 mouth smaller within than without ; lower jaw not expan- 

 sible; chin shields unsymmetr'ical, no mental groove. 

 Scales generally smooth , 13-15. Maxillary small, with few 

 and small teeth ; other teeth strong. 



AMBLYCEPHALUS, Wagler. 



Head short, thick, high, with convex lips. Crown shields 

 have often small shields intercalated; several loreals; a 

 complete orbital ring. Scales 13, smooth, elongate ; verte- 

 brals large, hexagonal. Anal and subcaudals entire. Teeth 

 few ; a long anterior palatine and mandibulary tooth. 



A. BOA, Kuhl. 



Ventrals 152-170, subc. 88-112. Loreals 3, one above the 

 other. Purplish, marbled and dotted with brown ; cheeks 

 and lipsi carnation, with vertical subocular streak. Grows 

 to 3 feet. 



Straits. Climbs, and lives on insects. 



PAREAS, Wagler. 

 Cleft of mouth very short. Crown shields regular. Scales 

 15, generally smooth ; vertebrals larger. Anal entire, suh- 

 caudals bifid. Nasal generally simple. 



P. CARINATUS, Beinwardt. 



Ventrals 160-174, subc. 52-74. Resembles Amblycephalus 

 in its tumid lips and complete orbital ring. Greyish brown, 

 with reticulated black cross-bands ; black post-orbital streak. 

 Java, Cochin-China. 



P. MONTicoLUS, Cantor. 



' Ventrals 194, subci 87. Loreal none, replaced by a large 



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