: LIST SNAKES IN THE INDIAN MUSEUM. W. L. SCLATER, M. A., F. Z. S., DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT OP THE INDIAN MUSEUM, CALCUTTA PRINTED BY OEDER OF THE TRUSTEES OF THE INDIAN LIUSEm 1891. ^^> Issued Nov. 1 89 1, Price: One Rtcpec. I^tbrarg of t^e Museum OK COMPARATIYE ZOOLOGY, AT HARVARD fOLLECE, CAMBRIDGE, MASS. iFounticti tn pvt\3nte subscrfption, I'n 1861. No. \'X^^- F B B S E N T ]B » BY Uhc trustees OK THE INDIAN MUSEUM. REC JAN &ri892 LIST OP SNAKES IN THE INDIAN MUSEUM. BY W. L. SCLATER, M. A., F. Z. S., DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT OF THE INDIAN MUSEUM. CALCUTTA : PRINTED BY ORDER OF THE TRUSTEES OF THE INDIAN MUSEUM. 1891. Issued Nov. 1891. Price : One Rupee. : .QL ^ S3H CALCUTTA PRINTED AT THE BAPTIST MISSION PRESS, 41, LOWER CIRCULAR ROAD. INTRODUCTION. The following is a mere List of the Snakes in the Indian Museum ; it has not seemed necessary to give descriptions or the synonymy of the various species, this having in the case of the Indian forms been quite recently, thoroughly done by Mr. Boulenger in his Reptiles of British India ; and in the case of the exotic forms neither are our collections large enough, nor is my knowledge sufficiently extensive for the task. I have therefore contented myself with giving in each case the Author of the specific name and a reference to the best description, not necessarily the original one, to which I have been able to get access. The following table shows the number of the species and specimens of Indian and Exotic Snakes in the Museum: Indian Exotic Total ... — IV INTRODUCTION. long before the Museum collection can be rendered quite complete. The number of type specimens in the Museum amounts in all to 30, of which 12 were described by Blyth, 5 by Blan- ford and myself respectively, 3 by Stoliczka and Anderson and 2 by Theobald. A complete list of the types also will be found below. The classification adopted in the followinsf list is that of Mr. Boulenger's in his Reptiles of British India ; this classi- fication however includes only those genera found within the limits of the Indian Empire, but I have endeavoured, as far as possible, to interpolate the exotic genera into their rightful positions. In this, however, I fear, I may have made a good many errors, still there is absolutely no modern standard work on Snakes, and I thought it better to try and adopt a new classification than to fall back on obsolete arrangements. With regard to nomenclature I have of course followed Boulenger throughout for Indian Snakes ; for North Ameri- can Snakes I have made use of a monograph by Mr. Garman published in the 8th volume of tlie Memoirs of the Museum of the Comparative Zoology at Harvard College, Cambridge, Mass., for the Australian Snakes I have used Krefft's Snakes of Australia and for European forms Schreiber's Herpetologia Europaea ; for African and South American forms I have been unable to find any more modern general work than Giinther's Catalogue of Colubrine Snakes in the British Museum, and Gray's previous Catalogue of the non-colubriiie forms. The principal donors of the snakes in the Indian Museum are as follows : Col. Godwin Austen, Mr. S, E. Peal and Capt. J. Butler from Assam ; Col. Beddome from the South India, Mr. Blanford from Persia and also from many other pa^ts of India; Mr. J. Gammie from Sikkim, other donors from various parts of India are Dr. Anderson, Mr. W. Theobald, Dr. F. Stoliczka and Sir J. Fayrer. Description of the new species and notes on the Geogra- phical distribution and other points of interest, made out during the examination of the Indian Museum collection, will be found in a paper in the 60th volume of the Journal of the Asiatic Society which is referred to throughout in the List. In conclusion I have to thank Mr. Boulenger of the British Museum for help in naming several of the most in- teresting forms and for many hints and suggestions. LIST OF TYPE SPECIMENS IN THE INDIAN MUSEUM WITH REFERENCES TO THE ORIGINAL DESCRIPTIONS. ••®»*^ Typhlops theobaldianns, Stoliczka, Zaoccys tenasserimensis, Sclater, J. A. J. A. S. B. xl, 1871, p. 429. S. B., Ix, 1891, p. 238. Typhlops persicus, Blanford, Ann. Coluber prasinus, Blyth, J. A. S. B. Mag. N. H. {ij xiv, p. 3-i. xxiii, 1854, p. 291. Calamaria stahlknechti, Stoliczka, J, Pseudoxenodon macrops (Tropidono- A. S. B. xlii, 1873, p. 119. tus), Blyth, J. A. S. B. xxiii, 1854, Trachischium fuscum [Calamaria), p. 296. Bljth, J. A. S. B. xxiii, 1854, p. Tropidonotus platyceps, Blyth, J. A. 288. S. B. xxiii, 1854, p. 297. Trachisdiium tenuiceps [Calamaria), Tropidonotus nigrocinctus, Blyth, Blyth, J. A. S. B. xxiii, 1854, p. 288. J. A. S. B. xxiv, 1855, p. 717. Blythia reticulata [Calamaria), Blyth, Ti'opidonotus pealii, Sclater, J. A. J. A. S. B. xxiii, 1854, p. 287. S. B., Ix, 1891, p. 241. Lycodon a:ammiei (Ophites), Blanford, Tropidonotus nicobarensis, Sclater, J. A. S'. B. xMi, 1878, p. 130. J. A. S. B. Ix, 1891, p. 241. Hytli-nphobus davisonii [Ulupe), Blan- Dipsas multifasciatus, Blyth, J. A. ford, J. A. S. B. xlvii, 1S78, p. 129. S. B. xxix, 1860, p. 114. Pseudocyclophis bicolor [Calamaria), Dipsas rliinopoma, Blanford, Ann. Blyth, J. A. S. B. xxiii. 1854, p. 289. Mag. N. H. (4) xiv, p. 34. Pseudocyclophis persicus [Cyclopliis), HviJsirhina maculata, Blanford, J. A. Anderson, P. Z. S., 1872, p. 392. S. B. xlviii, 1879, p. 130.* Ablabes scriptus, Theobald, Journ. Distira tuberculata [Hydrophis), Linn. Soc, x, 1868, p. 42. Anderson, J. A. S. B. xl, 1871, p. 18. Ablabes stoliczkae, Sclater, J. A. S. B. Amblycephalus modestus [Pai-eas), Ix, 1891, p. -234. Theobald, Journ. Linn. Soc. x, 1888, Ablabes nicobariensis, Stoliczka, J. A. p. 55. S. B. xxxix, 1870, p. 184. Amblycephalus macularins, (Pareas), Simotes woodmasoni, Sclater, J. A. Theobald, Journ. Linn. Soc. x, 1868, S. B. Ix, 1891, p. 235. p. 54. Zamenis ladaccensis, Anderson, J. A. Trimeresurns cantoris [Trigonocepha- S. B. xl, 1871, p. 16. lus), Blyth, J. A. S, B. xv, 1846, p. Zaoccys nigromarginatns [Coluber), 377. Blyth, J. A. S. B. xxiii, 1854, p. 290. LIST OF THE INDIAN SNAKES NOT REPRESENTED IN THE INDIAN MUSEUM. Typhlops leucomelas, Boul. Silybtira myhendrae, Bedd. „ oatesi, Boul. „ madui-ensis, Bedd. „ mirus, Jan „ arcticeps, Giinth. ,, andamanensis, Stol. ,, macrolepis, Peters. „ tenuicollis, (Peters) Pseudoplectrurus canaricus, (Bedd.) Uropeltis grandis, Kel. Plectruras davisonii, Bedd. Rhinophib puuctatus, Jliill. „ guentheri, Bedd. „ plaiiiceps, Peters „ aureus, Bedd. Silybura liura, Giinth. Melauophidium wynadense, (Bedd.) ,, broughami, Bedd. „ punctatuni, Bedd. „ macrurhynchus, Bedd. ,, bilineatum, Bedd. „ phipsoni Mason Calamaria catonata, Bly. * Name changed to blaufonli by Boulonger (Reptiles Brit. Ind. p. 377). SYSTEMATIC INDEX. Xylophi's stonovliynchus, (fTiiiilh.) Coluber frenntus, (Gray) Traehiscliium rubriventer, (Jerd.) Dendrophis grandoculis, Boul. Aspidiira copii, Giiuth. Dendroi^liis candolineolatus, Giinth, Haplocercus ceylonensis, Giinth. Tropidonotus khasiensis, Boul. Lycodon anamallensis, Giinth. ,, ceylonensis, Giinth. ,, atropurpuveus, Cant. ,, bellulus, Stol. ,, scptemtrioualis, (Giinth.) ,, sancti-johannis, Boul, ,, carinatus, (Kuhl) Stoliczkaia khasiensis, Jerd. Hydrophobus gracilis, (Giinth.) Dipsas barnesii, Giinth. Pseudocyclophis walteri, Boettg. Psamniophis longifrons, Boul. * „ olivaceus, (Bedd.) Hydrophis schistosus, Daud. Simotes splendidus, Giinth, ,, mamillaris, Daud. „ beddomii, Boul. ,, spiralis, (Shaw) ,, torquatus, Boul. ,, torquatus, Giinth, Oligodon venustus, (Jerd.) Distira stokesii, (Gray). „ travancoricus, Bedd. „ bituberculata, (Peters) „ brevicauda, Giinth. „ ornata, (Gray) ,, templetonii, Giinth. Amblycephalus laevis, Boie „ ellioti, Giinth. „ andersouii, (Boul.) Lytorhynchus paradoxus, (Giinth.) Azeniiopg feae, Boul. tor) Zanienis gracilis, Giinth, Trimeresurus mucrosquamatus, (Can- SYSTEMATIC INDEX. (The names of Indian species are printed in small capitals of exotic species in ordinary type.) No. of speci- §5 OPHIDIA. mens. ^ FAJIILY TYPHOPIDAE. 1 Typhlops beaminus, ,.. 54 2 Typhlops beddomii, ... 1 3 Typhlops jerdoni, 1 4 Typhlops diardi, 28 5 Typhlops bothrioehyn- CHUS 10 6 Typhlops porrectus, ... 1 7 Typhlops theobaldianus , 2 8 Typhlops acutus, 9 9 Typhlops porsicus, 1 10 Typhlops syriacus, 2 11 Typhlops nigrescens, ... 2 12 Tyjihlina lineata, 1 13 Feylinia ciUTori, 1 FAMILY GLAUCONIIDAB. 14 Glauconia blanfoedi, FAMILY BOIDAE. 15 Morelia spilotes, 5 16 Morelia variegata, 17 Python eeticulatus, ... 18 Python MOLURUs, 19 Hortulia regia, 20 Aspidiotes melano- cephalus, 21 Corallus hortulanus. 1 SYSTEMATIC INDKX. VI No. of STSTEMATU: INDEX. No. of 138 Zamenis ladaccensis, 139 Zamenis karelinx, 140 Zamenis fasciolatus, 1-il Zamenis diadema, 1-12 Zamenis ARENARius, .. 143 Zamenis ravergieri, 144 Zamenis dahlii, 145 Zamenis hippocrepis .. 146 Zaoccys nigromargina- TUS, 147 Zaoccys tenasserimen- sis, 148 Zaoccys fnscus 149 Salvadora graliamiae ... 150 Herpetodryas carinatas, 151 Herpetodryas boddaerti, 152 Herpetodryas beruieri, 153 Pityopliis melanoleiicus, 154 Pityopliis cateuifer, ... 155 Coluber helena, 156 Coluber reticularis, 157 Coluber hodgsonii, ... 158 Coluber taeniurus, ... 159 Coluber RAPiATus, 160 Coluber melanurus, ... 161 Coluber prasinus, 162 Coluber oxycephalus, 163 Coluber subradiatus, ... 164 Coluber esculapii, 165 Coluber constrictor, ... 166 Coluber flagelliformis, 167 Coluber taeuiatus, 168 Coluber obsoletus, 169 Coluber guttatus, 170 GONYOPHIS margarita- TUS, 171 Xenelaphis hexagona- TUS, 172 Dendrophis pictus, ... 173 Dendrophis subocula- RIS, 174 Dendrophis bifrenalis,