188 BOTANIC GARDENS MENAGERIE. 



in the gardens have been bitten by young green vipers which 

 had fallen from a tree and been stepped on. The bite is not 

 fatal but gives a good deal of pain for a few hours, the inflamma- 

 tion being about as bad as that of a scorpion sting. A native 

 who possessed a large pariah dog, allowed a very large fresh- 

 caught green viper to bite the dog on the thigh. A dog uttered 

 a shriek and ran away, returning quite well in about two 

 hours and none the worse. A sparrow was put into the cage 

 of a green viper and flew about taking no notice of the snake, 

 till the viper suddenly struck it on the thigh, and the blood 

 immediately flowed. The bird flew away to the end of the 

 cage but did not seen at all affected by the poison. The snake 

 followed it up and struck at it again seizing its head in its 

 mouth and crushing it at once. As had the bird been free it 

 could easily have flown out of the snakes reach before the 

 snake caught it again, the action of the poison does not appear 

 to be of much value to the reptile. 



Python curtus. 



The little red python, a short thick red and grey snake for- 

 merly considered very rare is not at all uncommon in the forests 

 of Bukit Timah, and has often been exhibited. It is a sluggish 

 snake unless it means to strike which it does with lighting 

 like rapidity. It feeds on rats and mice and will take milk 

 occasionally. It only requires feeding once a month as a rule. 



Python reticulatus. 



The Python is one of the commonest snakes in Singapore. 

 And specimens of every size up to 26 feet long have been 

 constantly exhibited in the aviaries. Very large ones have 

 also been seen and killed also in a wild state in the gardens, 

 and small one have occasionally found their way into the 

 aviary cages and devoured some of the birds, and being after- 

 wards unable to escape by the small hole by which they 

 entered were captured on the following morning. Like many 

 snakes the python is nocturnal remaining quiet all day and 

 going out in search of food at night. Young pythons eat rats 

 and birds, and small to middle sized pythons are common visitors 



Jour. Straits Branch 



