COLUBER. 799 
near each fide of the belly runs a line like a chain, form¬ 
ed by linall white fcales, which has a very pleafing ap¬ 
pearance. 
41. Coluber acontia, or flying viper; the upper part of 
a red copper colour, the carinse of the fcales of a fhining 
white, the under part yellow lpotted with red, living in 
the trees of the ifland of Santa Cruz. Pennant defcribes 
this viper as lurking among trees in the ifland of Ceylon, 
fpringing from bough to bough to catch their prey, which 
is inlefts and birds. It does not attack mankind, but 
glides from his approach : but the Indians have the fame 
notion as the Arabs have, of its being a flying ferpent, 
feeing it fpring from one tree to another, like the flying 
fquirrel. 
42 Coluber angulatus, or angulated viper ; a native of 
Alia, upwards of two feet long, of a bright brown colour, 
with pointed tranfverfe bands, and broad black ones ; the 
abdominal fcuta 117, the fub-caudal fquama; 70; in all 
187, or 20 and 60, making 180. This ferpent, of which 
the body is long, and the neck very fmall, was diffefted 
by Seba, who found in the llomach a bird molt beauti¬ 
fully fpeckled, thrice as big as the head and neck of the 
animal ltfelf 5 fo that it would appear a thing impoflible, 
that a bird comparatively fo large could be fwallovved 
by a ferpent of fo (lender and fmall a head, unlefs he had 
been an eye witnefs of the faft. The head of this fer¬ 
pent is fmall, the front of it of a dirty brown, encircled 
at the back by a bright broad white chain, it is marked 
on its rhomboidal fcales with deep brown fpots. 
43. Coluber ceeruleus, the azure viper; a native of 
America, of a fky colour, the fcales white on one fide and 
white underneath; the abdominal fcuta 165, fub-caudal 
fquama; 24 p making x 89. 
44. Coluber albus, the white viper; a native of South 
America and India, entirely white, and deftitute of fpots; 
abdominal fcuta 170, lub-caudal fquama; 20; total 190. 
45. Coluber afpis, the afp ; of which there are many 
varieties. Tfle nofe is terminated by a kind of wart, the 
body reddilh yellow, with charafteriftic alternate uneven 
Itrise meeting together, the under part of a fteelifh blue 
fpotted with yellow. This is the viper of Mofes Charas. 
It is a native of feveral parts of France; fome call it a 
variety only of the berus. Abdominal fcuta 146, fub- 
caudal fquamae 46, total 192 ; by others the fquama; are 
adduced to 34, making the whole 190. The above is 
Linnaeus’s delciiption of the European afp. Seba has 
furnilhed us with drawings of the African and American 
afps, which are nearly alike in colour, but, very diflimilar 
in lize. Fig. 1 and 2, are the American fpecies, male and 
female; of ayellowilh brown, (potted with black; darkifli 
on the head and back, white under the belly, and a white 
tranfverfe band at the back part of the hindhead. Fig. 3, 
is the African afp found plentifully in Egypt; where, as 
Appian and Florus record, the celebrated Cleopatra died 
of its bite, having caufed one of thefe reptiles to be con¬ 
veyed to her for that purpofe, hidden in a balket of fruit; 
the eft’eft.produced was laid to be ftupor, terminating in 
a fatal lethargy, which configned the fair and memorable 
queen of Egypt into the arms of death. This viper is of 
a reddilh copper-colour fpotted with black, w'hite under 
the belly, and a white collar round its neck; the head 
fortified with ftrong laminae. Some naturalilts clafs this 
fpecies with the ammodytes, or land-coloured viper; but 
it is obvioufly a diftinft race. 
46. Coluber typlilus, the blind viper ; a native of South 
America and India, of a light blue colour, fourteen 
inches and a half long ; abdominal fcuta 140, fub-caudal 
fquamse 53, in all 193; or 154 and 38, making 192. 
47. Coluber fafciafus, the ltriped viper; a native of 
Virginia and Carolina. The body is covered with dark 
bluilh fcales, edged with'white, and indented at the (ides, 
the fcales are carinated, and the white edges, ftanding in 
uniform rows, form regular white ltripes : the under fide 
is blue; abdominal fcuta 128, fubcaudal fquamae 67 5 in 
all.i? 5 * 
48. Coluber fubfufcus, the brownilh viper: the fides 
fpotted with black, the Linnaean number of fcuta and 
fquamae is, abdominal 149, fub-caudal 43, total 192; but 
they are iikewiie numbered abdominal 154, fub-caudal 
4.3 ; and abdominal 149, fub-caudal 55 ; the firft 197, the 
lal! 204. 
49. Coluber crotalinus, the crotaline viper; a native of 
America, of a great lize, formed much like the crotalus, 
or rattle-fnake. It is of a yeliqwilh ground-colour all 
over, and mottled with dark brown ; the head cordated, 
the eye-brows prominent, the tail covered with fcutella 
only, and one third of the body long 5 abdominal fcuta 
154, fub-caudal fquama; 43 ; total 197. 
50. Coluber Halys, or Haly’s viper ; a very rare fpe¬ 
cies, a native of the dried: parts of the fouthern deiertsof 
Aftracan ; thicker, Ihorter, and more poifonous, than the 
berus; frightful, Dr. Pallas fays, from the thick-fet fub- 
carinated fcales rifing on its back. The under parts are 
whitilh, the upper of a pale grey, with tranfverfe fpots 
Gf an olive brown, fmaileft towards the lides. Abdo¬ 
minal fcuta 164, fub-caudal fquamse 34; in all 198. 
51. Coluber rufecens, the ruflet-coloured viper; the 
colours confift of a yellowiftr red and white, and the head 
is covered with lamina; like the naja. It is a very poi¬ 
fonous ferpent, The abdominal 159, fub-caudal fquamjs 
42 ; total 201. 
52. Coluber libitinus, the melancholy viper ; a na¬ 
tive of the Eaft Indies and Ceylon; fomewhat under a 
cubit in length. Its bite has the effeft of opium, caufing 
endlefs fleep. The back is bent inwards, the under part 
white, variegated with thick black or brown fpecks ; the 
upper part grey, with four rows of alternate tranfverfe 
ipots, the middle ones yellow r , thofe on the fides brown 
or black; the fcales on the back are fmooth, obtufeiy 
rounded, carinated, with the middle llria more confpicu- 
ous than the reft ; the head is broad, fiat, and chequered; 
the tail four inches long. The abdominal fcuta 155, 
the fub-caudal fquama; 45, total 200 ; or, in another va¬ 
riety, 152, and 43 ; in all 195. 
53. Coluber melanocephalus, the black-headed viper { 
a native of America, ieventeen inches long; remark¬ 
ably fmooth, the upper part yellowilh, the under white, 
a black ftripe on the head and back, the back of the head 
dark brown. There are feveral varieties, which differ 
with refpeft to the number of fcuta and fub-caudal 
fquama;. 
54. Coluber Panamenfis, or Panama viper. This is called 
byAlbertus Seba,the coluberFElculapius from Panama. He 
defcribes it as follows: “The Indians hold this fpecies of fer¬ 
pent facred, and conlideritas the giver of health. It is per- 
fcfitly harmlefs, and of a kind nature. There are many fpe- 
cimensof this viper defcribed by different writers. JElian 
gives it the name of 2rapEia,from its thick and grofs cheeks. 
Androvandus, in his Serpentology, p.271, gives a re- 
preientation of it, and adds that it is found in the river 
Tiber. Some authors defcribe it as of a yellow colour, 
others green ; but they feem never to have feen a.living 
fpecimen. The ferpent of which we have.given a repre- 
fentation is taken from the living fubjefit. The largeft 
of the fub-caudal fquama; are of a bright white under¬ 
neath. The upper fcales are equally difpofed and clofely 
fet ; by the bending of the body they feparate from eacli 
other, as the parts in the figure wall fhew. The fuper- 
fices and edges of the fcales look like hairs.' The upper 
part of the head is covered with uniformlamina;, to which 
thofe under the cheek are fimilar. The mouth is full of 
teeth above and below, bent inwards, and very (harp ; by 
thefe means whatever the animal feizes is forced into its 
jaws without any poflibility of efcape. This ferpent dis¬ 
covers its prey by fmell, and fafcinates it with its im- 
menfe eyes, viz. dor-mice, rats, mice, lizards, birds, &'c. 
on all of which it feeds. I have not hitherto been able 
to obferve anjr fmell ofmulk from the excrements, which 
has been advanced by fome. Abdominal fcuta 164, fub- 
caudal IquaniK 38 ; total 192, 
55, Coluber 
