BOV CONSTRICTOR. 



DO 



clining to white, and they are said to be veno- 

 mous. This species of snake is often found in 

 ant-hills, and I have likewise killed them in my 

 house ; they frequent dung-hills and places in 

 which vegetable matter has been allowed to re- 

 main for a length of time unremoved. 



The island of Itamaraca is said to be less in- 

 fested with snakes than the main land, and per- 

 haps this opinion is founded on experience ; 

 but some of those which are generally accounted 

 venomous certainly exist upon it. A rattle- 

 snake was killed at Amparo two years previous 

 to the period of which I am speaking. A horse 

 died one night in my neighbourhood, and his 

 death was attributed to the bite of a snake ; there 

 was a wound upon him, and his body was much 

 swoln. Manoel killed a cobra de veado y or ante- 

 lope snake (Boa Constrictor), which he brought 

 home to show me. It was a young one of seven 

 feet in length, and about the thickness of a man's 

 arm. The name which it bears of antelope 

 snake proceeds from the destruction which it 

 causes among these animals. The full-grown 

 snake of this species lies in wait for the antelope 

 and other animals of the same size ; it entwines 

 its tail around a tree, and patiently expects that 

 its prey will pass within its reach ; when this 

 occurs, it encircles the unfortunate animal with 

 its enormous body, thus securing it. I never 

 could discover, after much enquiry, that it had 



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