( Denisonia gouldii) is also sometimes mistaken for the young 
of the Brown Snake ; a comparison shows that this reptile differs 
from the latter in having the head black, but no black marking 
on the nape. 
Inconspicuous and scarcely ever noticed are the Blind 
Snakes, which spend their lives underground, or in nests of 
termites. In these harmless little reptiles, the scales are smooth 
and of equal size right around the body, for, unlike all our other 
snakes, the belly scales are not enlarged ; the mouth is very small, 
and the tail exceedingly short and ending in a spine. The 
commonest species is the southern Blind Snake ( Typhlops 
australis ) . 
During the spring one finds in every creek the frothy egg- 
masses of two Australian Bull-frogs (Limnodynasies dorsalis 
and L. tasmaniensis) . The first-named is our largest species, 
and, like many other frogs, puffs out its body when attacked, a 
faculty alluded to by fEsop. A little Tree-frog (Hyla ewingii) 
may be found sitting on leaves and twigs in warm, moist weather, 
but retires beneath the bark of trees and other sheltered places 
Fig. 31. — The Australian Bull Frog (Limnodynastes dorsalis). 
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