32 
taken for the same animal. He therefore gave the 
county credit for both. The ringed or common snake 
(Tropidonotus natrix) is a very harmless reptile, of 
the length of three feet. It is found chiefly in low 
moist woods, hedgerow^s, and damp meadows, par¬ 
ticularly in the vicinity of water, in which it is very 
fond of swimming, and has the power of remaining 
a considerable time beneath the surface. In its 
fondness for water it differs from the blind wmrm 
and viper. It feeds on mice, frogs, and small birds, 
which it swallows whole. The female deposits her eggs 
in dung-heaps or hot-beds. The snake is easily tamed, 
and often acquires a strong attachment to its pro¬ 
tector. The viper, or, as it is called in Scotland, the 
adder (Pelias Berus) is, fortunately for us, the only 
poisonous reptile existing in the country. Its bite, 
although poisonous, is seldom fatal. Instances of 
death have been recorded, but there is Very much doubt 
if the poison of the viper is virulent enough to prove 
fatal to a full-grown person, although in cases of 
children it may cause death. Mr Stewart then gave 
a description of the apparatus by which the wounds 
of poisonous reptiles are inflicted, and the process by 
Ayhich the poison is applied, and then gave the following 
as the distinguishing marks of the viper:—Scales much 
smaller than in the snake ; tail, not tapering, but 
ending abruptly ; head, thick and broad; eyes 
sparkling ; and jaws wide. The viper is very com¬ 
mon in Scotland and in Perthshire—frequenting dry 
woods, heaths, and sunny banks. The viper is ovo- 
viviparous—the female hatching the eggs in her body. 
Of the 4th order or Batrachia —animals distin¬ 
guished by commencing their existence as aquatic 
beings, and furnished with branchise or gills for 
respiration in water. There are in the county four 
species—1st, the frog (Rana temporaria.) Mr 
Stewart entered into a very minute description of 
the distinguishing characters of this species from the 
spawn onward through the tadpole state to the 
perfect animal. He then referred to the 2nd species, 
namely, the Toad (Bufo vulgare), a very interesting 
account of which he also gave, contradicting the 
many slanders promulgated regarding its poisonous 
