70 FAMILIAR LIFE IN FIELD AND FOBEST. 



snakes. Common in the Soutli, and occasionally 

 found on Long Island, JST. Y. ; southern New York 

 to Florida and Louisiana. 



The king snake {Ophiholus getulus sayi). Length, 

 forty-eight inches ; black above, with a yellow spot on 

 each scale ; the effect of these spots is to form sixty 

 transverse lines across the back ; yellowish-white be- 

 neath, 'with black blotches. West of the Alleghanies, 

 north to Illinois and Wisconsin (Hoy). 



Milk snake, spotted adder, 48 inches. 



The spotted adder, milk, or house snake {Ophi- 

 hoh/s dollatus triangulus).* Length, forty-eight 

 inches ; handsome ; pale brown or ash-gray above, 

 with about fifty dorsal, transverse, triangular choco- 

 late blotches edged with black ; other lateral ones ; 

 yellowish-white beneath, checkered with square black 

 blotches ; small eye ; twenty-one dorsal rows. It is 

 said to be fond of milk, and to frequent the floors of 

 dairies and cellars of houses. I killed one at least 

 thirty-eight inches long last summer in a vegetable 



* He has even more names — viz., chicken snake, thunder and 

 lightning snake, checkered adder, etc. 



