Fig. 52.—Denisonia superba(The Copperhead).
Fig. 52.—Denisonia superba(The Copperhead).
(1)D. superba(The Copperhead. Fig. 52).—Scales in 15-17 rows; nasal shield entire, in contact with the præocular; ventral scales 145-160; subcaudals 41-50.
Colour brownish to dark olive on the back, often yellow or salmon-red on the sides; belly yellowish or greyish-olive.
Total length, 1,010 millimetres; tail 160.
Habitat: New South Wales, Southern Australia, Tasmania.
(2)D. coronata.—Scales in 15 rows; 138-151 ventrals; 38-51 subcaudals.
Fig. 53.—Denisonia coronoides.
Fig. 53.—Denisonia coronoides.
Colour olive, with a black streak on each side of the head; belly yellowish or pale olive.
Total length, 480 millimetres; tail 95.
Habitat: Western Australia and New South Wales.
(3)D. coronoides(fig. 53).—Scales in 15 rows; 136-151 ventrals; 39-57 subcaudals.
Colour brown, lips yellow; belly salmon-red to dark olive-grey; end of tail salmon-red.
Total length, 440 millimetres; tail 80.
Habitat: Southern Australia and Tasmania.
(4)D. muelleri.—Scales in 17 rows; 118 ventrals; 38 subcaudals.
Colour grey-brown; lips and chin with yellow spots; belly grey.
Total length, 292 millimetres; tail 52.
Habitat: Queensland.
(5)D. frenata.—Scales in 19 rows; 167 ventrals; 35 subcaudals.
Colour olive-brown; upper lip yellow; belly white.
Total length, 390 millimetres; tail 54.
Habitat: Lake Elphinstone, Queensland.
(6)D. ramsayi(fig. 54).—Scales in 15 rows; 164 ventrals; 51 subcaudals.
Fig. 54.—Denisonia ramsayi.
Fig. 54.—Denisonia ramsayi.
Colour dark olive-green above, yellow beneath; subcaudals nearly black.
Total length, 265 millimetres; tail 50.
Habitat: New South Wales.
(7) D. signata (fig. 55).—Scales in 17 rows; 153-170 ventrals; 41-56 subcaudals.
Fig. 55.—Denisonia signata.
Fig. 55.—Denisonia signata.
Colour dark olive or black, head brown; belly dark grey or black.
Total length, 640 millimetres; tail 120.
Habitat: Queensland, New South Wales.
(8)D. daemelii.—Scales in 17 rows; 147-168 ventrals; 33-45 subcaudals.
Colour olive, head darker; belly yellowish-white.
Total length, 380 millimetres; tail 60.
Habitat: Queensland.
(9)D. suta.—Scales in 19 rows; 157-164 ventrals; 25-30 subcaudals.
Colour pale olive-brown, head dark brown, nape black; upper lip and belly yellow.
Total length, 200 millimetres; tail 23.
Habitat: Southern Australia.
(10)D. frontalis.—Scales in 19 rows; 154 ventrals; 30 subcaudals.
Colour light brown, with a vertebral black line; belly pearly-white, with a median bronze-coloured band.
Total length, 400 millimetres; tail 50.
Habitat: New South Wales.
(11)D. flagellum.—Scales in 17 rows; 132-138 ventrals; 25-27 subcaudals.
Colour pale brown; vertex, occiput, and nape black; upper lip and belly white.
Total length, 380 millimetres; tail 40.
Habitat: Victoria.
(12)D. maculata.(fig. 56).—Scales in 17 rows; 121-136 ventrals; 20-30 subcaudals.
Fig. 56.—Denisonia maculata.
Fig. 56.—Denisonia maculata.
Colour dark grey-brown, or brown; a large dark olive-green or brown blotch on the head, with two or three unequal light grey spots; belly white.
Total length, 400 millimetres; tail 55.
Habitat: Queensland.
(13)D. punctata.—Scales in 15 rows; 160 ventrals; 25 subcaudals.
Colour pale brown; head and nape orange; upper lip and belly yellow.
Total length, 350 millimetres; tail 36.
Habitat: North-Western Australia.
(14)D. gouldii(fig. 57).—Scales in 15 rows; 140-170 ventrals; 22-23 subcaudals.
Fig. 57.—Denisonia gouldii.
Fig. 57.—Denisonia gouldii.
Colour brownish-yellow; nape black; head covered with a broad greenish-blue blotch, extending from the nose to the neck; upper lip and belly yellow.
Total length, 435 millimetres; tail 50.
Habitat: Western and Southern Australia.
(15)D. nigrescens.—Scales in 15 rows; 170-200 ventrals; 30-46 subcaudals.
Colour dark olive; head black; belly yellow.
Total length, 545 millimetres; tail 75.
Habitat: New South Wales and Queensland.
(16)D. nigrostriata.—Scales in 15 rows; 180-184 ventrals; 50-64 subcaudals.
Colour yellow, streaked with black; head dark brown; upper lip and belly yellowish-white.
Total length, 380 millimetres; tail 52.
Habitat: Queensland.
(17)D. carpentariæ.—Scales in 15 rows; 166-183 ventrals; 31-43 subcaudals.
Colour brown; upper lip and belly yellowish-white.
Total length, 285 millimetres; tail 47.
Habitat: Northern Queensland.
(18)D. pallidiceps.—Scales in 15 rows; 170-178 ventrals; 37-38 subcaudals.
Colour dark olive-brown; head somewhat paler; belly yellowish. Total length, 590 millimetres; tail 80.
Habitat: Northern Australia.
(19)D. melanura.—Scales in 15 or 17 rows; 165-171 ventrals; 38-48 subcaudals.
Colour dark brown; head and sides usually reddish; belly yellow; tail black.
Total length, 1,000 millimetres; tail 140.
Habitat: Solomon Islands.
(20)D. par.—Scales in 16 rows; 164-166 ventrals; 40-49 subcaudals.
Colour reddish-brown, in broad bands with white intervals; head blackish-brown; belly white; tail with red rings.
Total length, 750 millimetres; tail 110.
Habitat: Faro and Howla Islands, Bougainville Straits, Solomon Islands.
(21)D. woodfordii.—Scales in 17 rows; 166-172 ventrals; 41-45 subcaudal pairs.
Colour brownish-white, with a reticulate pattern; head dark brown; belly white.
Total length, 670 millimetres; tail 100.
Habitat: New Georgia, Solomon Islands.
Maxillary bones extending forward as far as the palatines, with a pair of large grooved poison-fangs, followed by three small solid teeth; mandibular teeth longer in front. Head distinct from the neck; eyes very small, with round pupils; nostril between two nasal shields. Body cylindrical; scales smooth, in 15 or 17 rows. Tail short; subcaudals in 2 rows.
(1)M. ikaheka.—Scales in 15 rows; 180-223 ventrals; 39-55 subcaudals.
Colour yellow and black, in irregular cross-bars; head and tail black above; belly yellow.
Total length, 1,550 millimetres; tail 180.
Habitat: New Guinea.
(2)M. elapoides.—Scales in 17 rows; 208 ventrals; 35 subcaudals.
Colour cream, with 22 black bands, broader than the interspaces between them; snout and ocular region black.
Total length, 750 millimetres; tail 75.
Habitat: Florida Island, Solomon Group.
Characters the same as inMicropechis. Scales in 21 rows; ventrals angulate and notched laterally. Tail moderate; subcaudals in a single row.
(1)H. bungaroides(Syn.H. variegatus. The Broad-headed Snake).—204-221 ventrals; 40-56 subcaudals.
Colour black on the back, with yellow spots forming more or less regular cross-bands on the body; upper lip yellow, margined with black; belly blackish, yellow on the sides.
Total length, 1,620 millimetres; tail 210.
Habitat: New South Wales.
(2)H. bitorquatus(fig. 58).—Ventral scales strongly angulate laterally, 191-227; subcaudals 44-59.
Fig. 58.—Hoplocephalus bitorquatus.
Fig. 58.—Hoplocephalus bitorquatus.
Colour olive-green; head pale olive, with a bright yellow occipital blotch, and a large black blotch on each side of the nape; a pair of small spots in front of and between the eyes; three black transverse blotches on the vertex; belly greyish-olive or brown.
Total length, 510 millimetres; tail 95.
Habitat: Queensland, New South Wales.
(3)H. stephensii.—239 ventrals; 60 subcaudals.
Body barred alternately with black and white; the black bars are twice as broad as the white ones; head dark, spotted with yellow; a W-shaped yellow mark on the back of the head.
Total length, 760 millimetres.
Habitat: Port Macquarie, New South Wales.
Same general characters; nasal shield entire; scales on the body strongly keeled, in 23 rows. Tail moderate; subcaudals in a single row.
T. carinatus.—Colour dark olive, with darker cross-bands; belly yellow, more or less tinged with olive-green.
Total length, 730 millimetres; tail 120.
Habitat: New South Wales, Queensland.
Same general characters; pupil round; nasal shield entire. Body cylindrical; scales smooth, disposed obliquely, in 15-19 rows, the lateral scales shorter than the dorsals. Tail moderate; subcaudals in a single row.
N. scutatus(Syn.Hoplocephalus curtus. The Tiger Snake. Fig. 59).—Colour dark olive; belly yellow or olive; the shields often dark-edged.
Fig. 59.—Notechis scutatus(The Tiger Snake.)
Fig. 59.—Notechis scutatus(The Tiger Snake.)
Total length, 1,280 millimetres; tail 170.
Habitat: Australia and Tasmania.
Dentition as inHoplocephalus. Head but little distinct from the neck; eyes small, with round pupils; no internasal shields. Body cylindrical, rigid. Scales smooth, in 15 rows. Tail short; subcaudals in a single row.
R. bicolor.—Colour greyish-olive on the back, yellowish-white on the belly; tongue white.
Total length, 395 millimetres; tail 55.
Habitat: Australia.
Characters the same, but head distinct from the neck; eyes small, with vertically elliptic pupils; nostril between two nasal shields. Body stout, cylindrical; scales smooth, slightly oblique, in 19 rows. Tail short; subcaudals in a single row.
B. curta.—Colour uniform olive-brown; belly yellowish.
Total length, 490 millimetres; tail 70.
Habitat: Western Australia.
Maxillary bones extending forwards as far as the palatines, with a pair of large grooved poison-fangs, followed by two or three small teeth; anterior mandibular teeth elongate, fang-like. Head distinct from the neck; eyes small, with vertically elliptic pupils; nostril in the upper part of a single nasal shield. Body stout, cylindrical. Scales more or less distinctly keeled, in 21-23 rows. Tail short, compressed at the end and terminating in a sort of long spine, turned upwards; anterior subcaudals in a single row, posterior in 2 rows.
Fig. 60.—SkullofAcanthophis antarcticus. (After G. A. Boulenger,op. cit.)
Fig. 60.—SkullofAcanthophis antarcticus. (After G. A. Boulenger,op. cit.)
A. antarcticus(The Death Adder;fig. 61).—Supraocular shields often raised and angular, assuming the shape of little horns; scales on the crown of the head rugose and striated; 113-130 ventrals; 41-51 subcaudals (the last 5-27 are divided).
Colour yellow-brown or reddish, with more or less distinct dark cross-bands; black spots or small dark bars on the lips; belly yellowish-white; end of tail yellow or black, covered with spiny scales.
Fig. 61.—Acanthophis antarcticus(The Death Adder).
Fig. 61.—Acanthophis antarcticus(The Death Adder).
Total length, 850 millimetres; tail 150.
Habitat: Moluccas, New Guinea, Australia.
Maxillary bones extending forwards as far as the palatines, with a pair of moderately large grooved poison-fangs; no other maxillary teeth; mandibular teeth subequal. Eyes moderate, with round pupils; nasal shield entire. Body cylindrical; scales smooth, in 15 rows; ventrals rounded; tail moderate; subcaudals in a single row.
E. minor.—Colour dark olive, with a black occipital blotch in the young; belly yellow or greenish-grey.
Total length, 460 millimetres; tail 95.
Habitat: South-west Australia.
Maxillary bones extending forwards as far as the palatines, with a pair of moderately large grooved poison-fangs, and two small teeth near the posterior extremity of the bone; anterior mandibular teeth the longest. Head small, not distinct from the neck; eyes small, with vertically elliptic pupils; nostril in a single nasal shield. Body short, cylindrical; scales smooth, in 15-17 rows. Tail very short; subcaudals in 2 rows.
(1)R. bertholdi.—Scales in 15 rows; 112-126 ventrals.
Colour yellow, with 19-40 black annuli, usually narrower than the interspaces; head brown, with a large black blotch on the nape, and another on the vertex and temples.
Total length, 270 millimetres; tail 22.
Habitat: Southern and Western Australia.
(2)R. australis(fig. 62).—Scales in 17 rows; 152-163 ventrals; 18-20 subcaudals.
Fig. 62.—Rhynchelaps australis.
Fig. 62.—Rhynchelaps australis.
Colour red on the body, with ill-defined cross-bars formed of yellowish black-edged scales; a black blotch on the head, covering the vertex and temples, and surrounding the eyes; another large blotch on the nape; snout and occiput yellow; belly white.
Total length, 290 millimetres; tail 25.
Habitat: Queensland.
(3)R. semifasciatus.—Scales in 17 rows; 143-170 ventrals; 17-25 subcaudals.
Colour yellow, with brown cross-bands; large brown blotches on the head and nape; belly white.
Total length, 300 millimetres; tail 30.
Habitat: West Australia.
(4)R. fasciolatus.—Scales in 17 rows; 145-161 ventrals; 22-27 subcaudals.
Colour red, with numerous blackish-brown cross-bands; large blackish-brown blotches on the head and nape; belly white.
Total length, 335 millimetres; tail 30.
Habitat: West Australia.
Maxillary bones extending forwards beyond the palatines, bearing a pair of moderately large grooved poison-fangs, and one ortwo small teeth near their posterior extremities; mandibular teeth subequal. Head small, not distinct from neck; eyes very small, with round pupils; nostril in a single nasal shield. Body cylindrical; scales smooth, in 15 rows. Tail very short, obtuse; subcaudals in 2 rows.
(1)F. calonota.—Six supralabial shields; 126-131 ventrals; 29-30 subcaudals.
Colour yellow, with a black vertebral stripe; a black bar across the end of the snout; a large black blotch covering the vertex and the parietals; belly white.
Total length, 215 millimetres; tail 33.
Habitat: West Australia.
(2)F. bimaculata.—Scales in 15 rows; 181-200 ventrals; 21-25 subcaudals.
Fig. 63.—Skull ofFurina occipitalis. (After G. A. Boulenger,op. cit.)
Fig. 63.—Skull ofFurina occipitalis. (After G. A. Boulenger,op. cit.)
Fig. 64.—Furina occipitalis.
Fig. 64.—Furina occipitalis.
Colour yellow, with large black blotches on the snout, middle of head, and occiput; belly white.
Total length, 330 millimetres; tail 25.
Habitat: West Australia.
(3)F. occipitalis(fig. 64).—Scales in 15 rows; 180-234 ventrals; 14-25 subcaudals.
Entire body ringed with black and white, annuli narrower onbelly; head black, with a broad white band across the occiput, and another narrower and irregular one across the snout; nose black.
Total length, 590 millimetres; tail 36.
Habitat: Australia.
There are no poisonous snakes in New Zealand. In New Caledonia noterrestrialpoisonous snakes are known, butHydrophiidæabound on its shores, as on those of the majority of the islands of the Pacific.
In Australia, especially in New South Wales and farther to the north, fatalities due to the bites of poisonous snakes are not rare. The most dangerous species are:Acanthophis antarcticus(the Death Adder),Diemenia textilis(the Brown Snake),Pseudechis porphyriacus(the Black Snake), andNotechis scutatusorHoplocephalus curtus(the Tiger Snake).
The health authorities of this country have accordingly taken the wise precaution of circulating very widely among the public coloured placards bearing illustrations of these four species, with a description of the essential anatomical details by which they may be recognised. Similar placards are exhibited in all the schools, and a generous distribution is made of instructions, printed on handkerchiefs, indicating the most effective method of treating poisonous bites.
In Queensland, according to information furnished to me by Mr. C. W. De Vis, late Director of the Queensland Museum, Brisbane, the number of deaths resulting from the bites of poisonous snakes has been only twenty-seven in ten years.
The fauna of the New World includes only a very small number of poisonous snakes belonging to the familyColubridæ. The GenusElapsalone is represented there by twenty-eight species, scattered over Mexico, Central America, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, and Brazil.
Viperidæ, on the other hand, are extremely numerous, and belong exclusively to the subfamilyCrotalinæ; there are noViperinæ.
Fig. 65.—Skull ofElaps marcgravii. (After G. A. Boulenger,op. cit.)
Fig. 65.—Skull ofElaps marcgravii. (After G. A. Boulenger,op. cit.)
The characters of this genus are: Maxillary bones very short, extending beyond the palatines, and bearing a pair of large poison-fangs; pterygoid teeth few or absent; mandibular teeth all of equal length. No postfrontal bones; præfrontals meeting, or narrowly separated on the median line. Head small, not distinctfrom neck; eyes small, with vertically elliptic or sub-elliptic pupils; nostril between two nasal shields. Body cylindrical; scales smooth, in 15 rows. Tail short; subcaudal scales in 2 rows, or partly single, partly in 2 rows.
(1)E. surinamensis.—Seven supralabials, of which the fourth enters the eye; frontal shield very narrow; 167-182 ventrals.
Colour red, with black annuli disposed in threes (the middle one broader), separated by narrow yellow interspaces; 7 or 8 sets of annuli on the body; the red scales dotted with black; head red above, with the shields black-edged, followed by a black cross-band behind the parietals.
Total length, 740 millimetres; tail 95. Grows to 1,900 millimetres.
Habitat: Venezuela, Guianas, Northern Brazil, North-east Peru.
(2)E. heterochilus.—Six supralabials, second and third entering the eye; snout narrow; 209 ventrals.
Colour red, with black annuli, as inE. marcgravii.
Total length, 553 millimetres; tail 43.
Habitat: Brazil.
(3)E. euryxanthus(Sonoran Coral Snake).—Seven supralabials, third and fourth entering the eye; internasals nearly as long as the præfrontals; 215-241 ventrals; 21-29 subcaudals.
Colour red, with 11 black annuli edged with yellow; head black.
Total length, 400 millimetres; tail 33.
Habitat: Arizona, Colorado, North-western Mexico. It is found in Arizona up to an altitude of nearly 6,000 feet (1,800 metres).
(4)E. gravenhorstii.—First lower labial in contact with its fellow; posterior nasal not reaching the præocular: 191 ventrals; 23 subcaudals.
Colour: Seven sets of black annuli disposed in threes, median annulus the broadest; head black, with a yellow transverse band behind the eyes.
Total length, 550 millimetres; tail 50.
Habitat: Brazil.
(5)E. langsdorffii.—Ventrals 204-225; subcaudals 37-54; 1 + 1 temporals.
Colour dark brown, with 63 transverse series of cream-coloured spots, each occupying one scale; belly yellow, with red cross-bands.
Total length, 300 millimetres.
Habitat: Upper Amazons.
(6)E. buckleyi.—203-211 ventrals; 39-43 subcaudals; 1 + 2 temporals.
Colour orange, with 48-60 black annuli edged with small yellow spots; head black; temples yellow.
Total length, 505 millimetres; tail 70.
Habitat: Northern Brazil, Eastern Ecuador.
(7)E. anomalus.—227 ventrals; 29 subcaudals; 1 + 1 temporals.
Colour: Body with 55 black annuli separated by narrow brownish-white bands; belly yellowish; anterior half of head black, posterior half yellow; tail yellow or red, with 4 black rings.
Total length, 280 millimetres; tail 23.
Habitat: Colombia.
(8)E. heterozonus.—Scales in 15 rows; 210-219 ventrals; 16-23 subcaudals; 1 + 1 temporals.
Colour red or brown, with 17 to 23 black rings, mostly narrower than the interspaces; a black band on the head across the eyes.
Total length, 900 millimetres; tail 40.
Habitat: Eastern Ecuador, Eastern Peru, Bolivia.
(9)E. elegans.—Scales in 15 rows; 189-221 ventrals; 29-47 subcaudals; 1 + 1 temporals.
Colour: Black annuli in sets of three, separated by reddish-brown interspaces; 12-17 sets; head black, with yellow blotches.
Total length, 730 millimetres; tail 70.
Habitat: Mexico and Guatemala.
(10)E. annellatus.—Scales in 15 rows; 200-211 ventrals; 30-45 subcaudals; 1 + 1 temporals.
Colour black, with 41-49 narrow white rings on the body, 4-7 on the tail; a white ring on the head.
Total length, 490 millimetres; tail 70.
Habitat: Eastern Peru.
(11)E. decoratus.—Scales in 15 rows; 196-213 ventrals: 29-37 subcaudals.
Colour red, with 15-16 sets of black annuli disposed in threes; head yellow, with end of snout black, and a black band across the eyes.
Total length, 625 millimetres.
Habitat: Brazil.
(12)E. dumerilii.—Scales in 15 rows; 197-204 ventrals; 50-53 subcaudals.
Colour: 8-9 sets of three black annuli on red and yellow; head black, with a yellow band on the occiput.
Total length, 410 millimetres; tail 65.
Habitat: Colombia.
(13)E. corallinus(The Coral Snake).—Scales in 15 rows; 179-231 ventrals; 30-47 subcaudals; 1 + 1 temporals.
Colour: Body with black annuli, separated by red interspaces edged with yellow; head bluish-black; temples yellow; a blue line from behind the eye to the lower jaw; tail white.
Total length, 790 millimetres; tail 70.
Habitat: Tropical South America and Lesser Antilles (St. Thomas, St. Vincent, Martinique).
(14)E. hemprichii.—Scales in 15 rows; 168-181 ventrals; 22-29 subcaudals; 1 + 1 temporals.
Colour: Black, with red or yellow annuli, a broad annulus between the narrow ones; occiput, upper lip, and temples yellow.
Total length, 720 millimetres; tail 65.
Habitat: Guianas, Colombia, Peru.
(15)E. tschudii.—Scales in 15 rows; 207-221 ventrals; 21-28 subcaudals.
Colour: Body with black annuli broader than the interspaces, disposed in sets; interspaces red and yellow; snout and occiput black.
Fig. 66.—Elaps fulvius(The Harlequin Snake, or Coral Snake). (After L. Stejneger.)
Fig. 66.—Elaps fulvius(The Harlequin Snake, or Coral Snake). (After L. Stejneger.)
Total length, 430 millimetres; tail 35.
Habitat: Peru.
(16)E. dissoleucus.—Scales in 15 rows; 200 ventrals; 19 subcaudals.
Coloration as in foregoing species.
Total length, 1,070 millimetres; tail 35.
Habitat: Venezuela.
(17)E. fulvius(Harlequin, or Coral Snake,fig. 66).—Scales in 15 rows; 180-237 ventrals; 30-59 subcaudals.
Colour: Body with black, red, and yellow annuli; tail with black and yellow annuli; snout black.
Total length, 990 millimetres; tail 85.
Habitat: Eastern North America, from Southern Virginia, the Ohio River, and the Missouri to the Rio Grande, Mexico. Central America.
(18)E. psyches.—Scales in 15 rows; 188-214 ventrals; 32-47 subcaudals.
Colour: Body with alternate black and brown annuli, and 48-52 narrow yellow rings; head black, blotched with yellow.
Total length, 495 millimetres; tail 80.
Habitat: Guianas.
(19)E. spixii.—Scales in 15 rows; 201-219 ventrals; 22-29 subcaudals.
Colour: red, with 20-38 black rings disposed in threes; a black occipital collar, followed by a wide red space.
Total length, 1,400 millimetres; tail 70.
Habitat: Venezuela and Northern Brazil.
(20)E. frontalis.—Scales in 15 rows; 197-230 ventrals; 15-26 subcaudals. Tail ending very obtusely.
Colour: Body with black annuli disposed in threes, with red and yellow interspaces; head black, spotted with yellow or red.
Total length, 1,350 millimetres; tail 70.
Habitat: Southern Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Argentina.
(21)E. marcgravii.—Scales in 15 rows; 210-240 ventrals; 23-42 subcaudals.
Colour: Body with black annuli in 6-10 sets of three, separated by broad red interspaces, the middle annulus usually wider; snout yellow, the end usually black; back of head red.
Total length, 1,120 millimetres; tail 100.
Habitat: Tropical South America.
(22)E. lemniscatus.—Scales in 15 rows; 241-262 ventrals; 30-39 subcaudals.
Colour: Body with 11-14 sets of black annuli disposed in threes, separated by red interspaces; head yellow; end of snout and a band across the middle of the head black.
Total length, 1,000 millimetres; tail 80.
Habitat: Guianas, Brazil.
(23)E. filiformis.—Scales in 15 rows; 290-308 ventrals; 35-45 subcaudals.
Colour: Body with black annuli disposed in threes, with red interspaces; head yellow; end of snout black; a black band across the eyes.
Total length, 575 millimetres; tail 40.
Habitat: Amazons, Colombia.
(24)E. mipartitus.—Scales in 15 rows; 210-278 ventrals; 24-34 subcaudals.
Colour: black, with 40-68 narrow white annuli; head black to between the eyes, elsewhere yellow.
Total length, 610 millimetres; tail 50.
Habitat: Central America and Tropical South America.
(25)E. fraseri.—Scales in 15 rows; 303 ventrals; 25 subcaudals.
Colour: black, with 75 narrow whitish rings with broken outlines; head black in front, yellow behind.
Total length, 780 millimetres; tail 40.
Habitat: Ecuador.
(26)E. mentalis.—Scales in 15 rows; 255-268 ventrals; 30-31 subcaudals.
Colour: Body black, with 58-70 narrow white annuli, which becomewider on the belly; snout black, occiput yellow; tail annulate, black and orange.
Total length, 490 millimetres; tail 30.
Habitat.—Colombia and Ecuador.
(27)E. ancoralis.—Scales in 15 rows; 258 ventrals; 31 subcaudals.
Colour: Body with 16 sets of black annuli disposed in threes, the middle one of each set a little wider; head light in front, spotted with black; an anchor-shaped black mark on the occiput and nape.
Total length, 780 millimetres; tail 57.
Habitat: Ecuador.
(28)E. narduccii.—Scales in 15 rows; 240-315 ventrals; 15-33 subcaudals.
Colour: black, beneath with yellow or red cross-bands or transversely oval spots, sometimes extending as triangular blotches up the sides; head with a yellow cross-band.
Total length, 720 millimetres; tail 50.
Habitat: Eastern Ecuador, North-eastern Peru, Bolivia.
The species of the genusElaps, which are remarkable for the brightness and beauty of their colours, are generally found in forests.
“The traveller,” says Neuwied, “who ventures into the great Brazilian forests, where the ground is covered with leafy plants, is astonished to see shining through the verdure the black and red rings of the beautiful Coral Snake. Uncertainty as to whether the creature is dangerous alone prevents him from seizing it. The body of the snake is not lithe enough to enable it to climb trees. Its food consists of small animals.”
Dr. Lacerda relates that the Austrian naturalist Wertheimer, when in the Brazilian settlement of Philadelphia, was bitten by a Coral Snake in the back of the hand. The usual symptoms of poisoning manifested themselves immediately, and the unfortunate man died twelve hours later. Nevertheless, the small size andslenderness of the fangs, the narrowness of their canals, and the considerable distance between the fangs and the anterior opening of the mouth, must necessarily render the bites of these snakes less serious and of rarer occurrence.
TheSolenoglyphaare infinitely more formidable in the two divisions of the New World. They are represented by a large number of species, some of which are feared in consequence of their size and ferocity, even more than on account of the deadliness of their venom (fig. 67).
Fig. 67.—Head and Skull ofCrotalus horridus.
Fig. 67.—Head and Skull ofCrotalus horridus.
The AmericanCrotalinæare divided into two groups:—
The first of these comprises snakes not provided with the caudal appendage, which is characteristic of the Rattle-Snakes. It consists of two genera:—
(a)Ancistrodon.
(b)Lachesis.
The second group includes only those snakes the tails of which are terminated by the scaly appendage known as the “rattle.”
These are likewise divided into two genera:—
(c)Sistrurus.
(d)Crotalus.
Usually with 9 shields on the head, or internasals and præfrontals broken up into scales. Body cylindrical: scales smooth or keeled, with apical pits. Tail moderate or short; subcaudals single or in 2 rows.
Fig. 68.—Ancistrodon piscivorus(Water Viper). (After Stejneger.)
Fig. 68.—Ancistrodon piscivorus(Water Viper). (After Stejneger.)
(1)A. piscivorus(Water Viper, or Cotton-mouth;fig. 68).—Snout rounded, soft above. Scales on the body strongly keeled, in 25 (rarely 27) rows; 130-147 ventrals; 33-51 subcaudals, all single or the posterior divided.
Colour pale reddish-brown to dark brown above, with more or less distinct dark brown cross-bands, or with alternating C-shaped dark markings each enclosing a central spot. Belly dull yellow spotted with black, or almost black.
Total length, 1,170 millimetres; tail 200.
Habitat: Eastern North America, from North Carolina and Indiana to Florida and Texas. The Water Viper lives for the most part in the vicinity ofrivers, and feeds upon fish, but also devours small warm-blooded animals. The Creoles call it the Congo Snake. It is fairly common in the environs of New Orleans. In summer time it conceals itself in the branches of trees at the edge of the water. It frequents inundated rice-fields, and is a terror to the blacks. It attacks readily, and opens its jaws some seconds before it bites.
(2)A. bilineatus.—Snout obtusely pointed. Scales more or less strongly keeled, in 23 (rarely 25) rows; 135-141 ventrals; 52-64 subcaudals, anterior single, posterior divided.
Colour dull yellow or reddish-brown, with more or less distinct darker cross-bands, or alternating transverse blotches, with yellow edges; a vertical yellow line on the rostral shield, and a fine yellow line round the snout; belly brownish or blackish, with white spots.
Total length, 1,100 millimetres; tail 200.
Habitat: Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras.
(3)A. contortrix(The Copperhead).—Snout rounded or truncate. Scales strongly keeled, in 23 (rarely 25) rows; 145-155 ventrals; 31-52 subcaudals, anterior single, posterior divided.
Colour dull yellow or reddish-brown, with dark brown or brick-red cross-bars; these bars are sometimes interrupted on the vertebral line, and form alternating triangles; belly yellow or reddish, more or less spotted with grey or brown.
Total length, 990 millimetres; tail 110.
Habitat: North America, from Massachusetts and Kansas to Northern Florida and Texas.
This snake is often more dreaded than a Rattle-Snake.
InLachesisthe caudal rattle is represented by a series of 10 or 12 rows of spiny scales, which are slightly hooked at the tips. The head is covered with small shields or smooth or keeled scales, with or without apical pits. The maxillary is much reduced; the transverse or pterygoid bone, on the contrary, is greatly developed.
The name is derived from one of the Parcæ, daughters of Night, who placed the thread on the spindle, and upon whom depended the fate of men.
In addition to the 19 Asiatic species, of which we have already given descriptions, the genusLachesisincludes 21 American species.
(1)L. mutus(Bushmaster, or Surucucu).—Two or three scales separating the internasals in front; 10 to 15 scales on a line between the supraoculars; 9 or 10 supralabials. Scales tubercularly keeled, feebly imbricate, in 35 or 37 rows; 200-230 ventrals; 32-50 subcaudals.