2 l6 
SNAKES. 
few representatives of the moon-snakes are confined to South America; the 
species here figured (Scytale coronatum ) being an inhabitant of the eastern side 
of that continent. In size this snake is comparatively small, measuring only 
about 2 feet in length; its distinctive characteristic being that on the hinder 
portion of the body, or anterior part of the tail, the middle row of scales are not 
greatly enlarged. In young individuals the ground-colour is red, with a dark 
brown circular spot on the back of the head, another on the crown, and a ring on 
the neck, behind which are smaller spots of the same colour. With age the colour 
darkens, and the markings disappear, till in the adult the upper surface is black, 
and the lower side white. Very common in the neighbourhood of Bahia, this 
snake, like the other members of the subfamily, is almost exclusively nocturnal; 
and its food consists solely of lizards. Although their fangs are large, it appears 
that these reptiles never attack human beings. 
cat-snake (J nat. size). 
Cat Snake As one ^ ie ^ ew European representatives of the group under 
consideration, reference may be made to the so-called cat-snake 
(Tarbophis vivax), which is the sole member of its genus. It is characterised by 
its spindle-shaped body, the clear distinction between the flattened head and the 
neck, the relatively short tail, and the small size of the eyes. In place of a lower 
preocular shield, the elongated loreal extends backwards to the eye, so as to come 
m contact with the upper preocular; this arrangement being unknown in any other 
European snake. In the lower jaw the front teeth are much longer and more bent 
than those which follow; while the fangs in the hinder part of the upper jaw are 
also elongated and much curved. Sometimes reaching a little over a yard in length 
this snake is of a dirty brownish yellow or grey ground-colour, with small black 
