COLUBER. 
8to 
no marginal row above. Two fangs, remarkably long, 
emergent from the lacs on each fide. The eyes lateral, 
large, oval, prominent. The nofcrils near the eyes very 
wide, open. The trunk ; the back fomewhat carinated, 
the Tides comprefled'or fub-declining. The fcales acute- 
ovate, carinated, imbricate. The length two feet fix 
inches; the circumference of the neck an inch and a half; 
of the thickeft part of the trunk, two inches one-third. 
The tail round, flender, obtule: meafured five inches, 
The colour; the head, tiunk, and tail, of a frefh green; 
the laft row of fquanv.e on the belly yellow'. The fcuta 
of a pale ftraw-coiour, and fome of them have a fmall 
green fpot on each fide. This fnake, which had been 
caught two days before on the hills in the vicinity of Vi- 
zagapatam, looked frefh and lively, was very alert, biffed, 
and (happed at every thing oppoled to it, yet did-not of¬ 
fer to touch a chicken which was walking about in the 
fame room. The remarkably long flender fangs, expofed 
oir opening the mouth, betokened its being highly noxi¬ 
ous ; but the peafants who brought it, affirmed that its 
power of killing extended only to the fmaller animals, not 
to dogs or fheep; and that to mail its bite caufed various 
diforders, but never death. Abdominal fcuta 170, fub- 
caudal fquamae 58; total 228. 
174. Botla pajferiki .—This fnake agrees exa&ly in mod 
circumftances with the my&erizans. The head, confider- 
ably thicker than the neck, oblong, deprefled above, 
rounded on the fides, and contra&ing at the eyes, is 
lengthened into a long, llraight, angular, pointed, rof- 
trum, which refembles the beak of a bird, with a fmall, 
loft, obtufe, reflex, procefs, at the extremity. The occi¬ 
put is covered with fub-orbicular, imbricate, fcales; the 
crown and roftrum with eleven lamina;; of which the 
two anterior are pyramidal, rounded at the bafe ; the 
next pair nearly of the fame form, but larger; next a 
fmall pair fub-triangular; the central lamina between the 
eyes Ipatulate, thofe on the fide conical; the pofterior 
pair femi-cordate. The mouth wide; the upper jaw a 
little longer than the lower, the fcale in front not emar- 
ginate. The teeth reflex, flender, fharp ; the anterior, 
in both jaws, lefs clofe, thicker, and longer; a marginal 
row, in the upper jaw, and two palatal rows. The eyes 
lateral, large, oval, prominent, of a golden colour. The 
noftrils fmall, on the fide of the rolirum near the apex. 
The trunk fomewhat triangular; the fcales linear-lanceo¬ 
late, except on the carina of the back, and in the row on 
each fide of the fcuta, where they are broad-oval. On 
the neck and fore part of the trunk they are ioofe, and 
only contiguous ; on the reft clofe, imbricate. The length 
four feet one inch 5 the circumference of the neck one 
inch and a quarter; that of the trunk, where thickeft, 
two and a half. The tail round, very flender, covered 
with ovate imbricate fcales, tapers to a fharp point. The 
liead feems as if covered with green velvet; the lips and 
fides of the throat of a deep yellow. The trunk and tail 
of a frefh grafs-green, with a white fillet interfered by 
orange lines, running along the edge of the fcuta, on 
each fide of the anus, and down half the tail along the 
edge of the fub-caudal fquamEe, The fcuta and fquamae 
are of a cineritious colour, blended with a faint pink, 
freckled elegantly with minute black and dufky-yeilow 
dots, while the inferior margins of the fcuta, tinged with 
a dark yellow, form a fucceflion of tranlverfe convex fil¬ 
lets. This fnake is very ferocious, elevating its head and 
neck like the cobra de capello, opening the mouth wide, 
luffing furioufly, and fnapping at every thing oppofed to 
it. Its bite, however, on chickens, produced no other 
bad effeft than pain, which foon ceafed; and though the 
upper fore teeth may fometimes be miftaken for fangs, it 
certainly pofTefles no poifonous organs. Abdominal fcuta 
174, fub-caudal fquamae 148; total 322. 
J 7S- Jarapotoo .—The head is a little broader than the 
neck, fmall, ovate, deprelfed, obtufe, with nine plates, or 
laminae; the occiput covered with fmall, yellowifh, im¬ 
bricate fcales. The two anterior plates, between the 
noftrils, fmall, grbicular; the next two larger, irregularly 
angular; the two lateral between the eyes, conical; the 
middle one fnield-form, acute; the two polterior lemi- 
cordate. The mouth middle fize ; the jaws nearly equal. 
The teeth a marginal and two palatal rows above, the 
anterior teeth in the marginal row being fomewhat longer 
than the others. The eyes lateral, globular, prominent. 
The noftrils, at the edge of the roftrum, large, open. The 
trunk round, polifhed, covered with fmall, ovate, clofe, 
imbricate, fcales. Length one foot three or four inches. 
Thicknefs, near the head, of a goofe-quill; in the middle 
of the trunk fomewhat more than a fwan-quill. The tail 
very ftiort, tapering fudderdy, and terminating in a.b)unt 
. point. The colour of the laminae on the head is black ; 
the occiput, the fides of the mouth, and the throat, yel¬ 
lowifh-white. The back and the tail black, elegantly 
variegated with two minute white lines, or rows of dots, 
on each fcale. The fcuta or fub-caudal fquama; are of 
the fame colour with the throat. Abdominal fcuta 175, 
fub-caudal fquamae 56; total 231. 
176. Tar tutla-. — The head much broader than, the 
neck, fmall, round, ovate, obtufe, deprelfed, covered with 
nine laminae; the two fmalleft, between the noftrils, an¬ 
gular ; the next two irregular fquare-form ; of the three 
between the eyes the middle one largeft, and broad (hield- 
form, the lateral crefcent-fhape; the pofterior pair cordate. 
The mouth wide; teeth fmall, numerous, reflex; a mar¬ 
ginal and two palatal rows in the upper jaw. The eyes 
near the nofe, very large, orbicular, protuberant. Noftrils 
fmall, open, near the point of the roftrum. The trunk, 
the back (lightly carinated; the fcales clofe, oval, po- 
lilhed. The length one foot eleven inches ; circumfe¬ 
rence of the neck three-fourths of an inch ; thickeft part 
of the tiunk two inches three-fourths. The tail thin, 
round, tapering to a very fmall point, which renders it 
difficult near the tip to count the Tub-caudal fcales; in 
length five inches. The colour is a light bay, variegated 
.remarkably on the back and fides, with a waving chain 
of triangular fpots, compofed of oblique, Ihort, black, 
lines, intermixed with white or yellowifh lines. The ab¬ 
dominal fcuta are of a yellowifh white, with a black or 
dufky dot on each fide; the fub-caudal fquamse have no 
dots. On comparing a male and female of this fpecies, 
the principal difference obferved was, that the trunk of 
the female, near the anus, being much thicker than in the 
male, made the tail to appear to taper more rapidly. This 
is one of the molt common fnakes at Vizagapatam. Half 
a dozen have been found in a night, crofting the road to 
the chief’s country houfe. Its bite is Laid by fome to be 
mortal, but the fnake-catcher affirm the contrary, and 
that it only produces biles and eruptions a month or two 
after the bite. A vigorous fubjett of this fpecies was 
made to bite a chicken, which lie did very fiercely and 
repeatedly in different parts. The chicken differed pain, 
but (hewed no figns of poilon. The fnake, unperceivedly, 
had wreathed its tail round the chicken’s neck, and the 
bird, had it not been refcued, would inevitably have been 
ftrangled. Soon after being difengaged, it recovered per¬ 
fectly. A fecond chicken was bitten in like manner, with¬ 
out any confequence; care having been taken to prevent 
the fnake twilling its tail round the bird’s neck; a mode 
by which they not only feent to kill, but aifo to hold, 
their prey. Abdominal fcuta 229, and fub-caudal fqua- 
mse 87, making 316; or 235, and 85, making 320; Or 
237, and 97, making 334. 
177. Gajoo tutta. —The head broader than the neck, 
ovate, deprefled, obtufe. The firlt pair of lamina; between 
the noftrils, fmall, fub-orbicular; the next pentago¬ 
nal; the middlemoft lamina between the eyes broad-lan¬ 
ceolate ; the laft pair femi-cordate. The mouth fmall; 
the teeth below numerous, clofe, reflex; two palatal rows 
above, clofe alfo, and numerous, but the anterior in the 
marginal row longer than ufual. The eyes, lateral, fmall, 
orbicular. Noftrils clofe to the roftrum, gaping. The 
trunk round. The fcales broad-ovate, imbricate. Length 
fourteen 
