The morning news., 1898-08-07
PHILIPPINE SEA SNAKES.
Formidable Creatures, More Deadly
Thnn the Cobra.

Than. the Cobra.
From the New York Times.
Not only do various reptiles and other
queer creatures abound in the forests and
swamps of the Philippines, but the sur
rounding water of these interesting islands
TEEN with veritable sea serpents. These
strange creatures, which pass their entire
existence in the water, possess deadly
fangs They are great menace to the
fishermen, who are constantly exposed to
their attacks.
Technically speaking, science has named
the group they constitute the HydrOphi-
dae. They differ from the terrestrial snakes
only in the possession of a fiat, paddle-like
tail. These reptiles inhabit the tropical
seas of the Old world, and occasionally
attain a length of eight feet. DR.. Rudolph
Weber, professor of drawing in Princeton
University, observed large numbers Of
these creatures while on a steamer bound
for Sumatra. Or. Weber was in charge Of
a scientific expedition, and naturally took
especial notice of them. He says, that
when the vessel was some fifty miles off
the coast, myriads of sea snakes could be
seen swimming about as far as the eye
could reach They kept upon the surface,
and several distinct species were recog-
nized among them. During calm weather
these reptiles may be seen summing them
selves upon the surface of the sea, remain
ing motionless except for a slight undu-
lation, caused by the movement of the
water. When alarmed, the agile reptiles
dive like arrows, leaving a train of bub-
bles behind them. Some species are eX-
tremely brilliant in coloration, being
bright yellow, banded with black while
others are tinted with delicate shades. of
green
The food Of sea snakes consists entirely
Of fishes Frequently fishes armed with
long sharp spines fall victims to their
appetltes. Among these are the apogous
and sluroids, which are furnished with
spines three and five inches long. But
these do not embarraSs the VoraciOus rep
tile in the least The victim is first kill
ed by the snakes poison after which 1t
is swallowed head first. The spines, nat
urally pointing toward the tail Of the vic
tim, and being relaxed in death, are COM
pressed against the body of the fish as
deglutution proceeds. While in search of
their prey sea snakes some times venture
a short distance up the mouth of large
rivers DR.. Weber records an instance
where he was fishing in one of the rivers
on the east coast Of Sumatra. He was
using drag net, and had cornered a
number of medium-sized fish. As the net
was being brought in, two large sea
snakes suddenly made their appearance
inside. They showed no signs of uneasi-
ness at capture, but We're hurriedly COB
bling down the cornered fishes. Nor did
they cease operations until the last fish
had disappeared, when the formidable
creatures made their escape.
Being air breathers, the sea snakes lead
a similar existence to the whale. Scien-
lists have expressed much interest as 10
how long they can remain under water.
Prof r. p. Whitfield Of tho American Mu-
| scum of Natural History, while dragging
for olg 1.y.fv ,Tr,
motiOnless among some coral grOwths,
some eight feet below the surface 1t
showed no signs of fear, and remained in
the same position for half an hour The
venom of these reptiles is even more dead
ly than thataof the cobra. The fangs are
very short and consequently do not pene-
trate so deep as the fangs Of most ser
pents, but only a scratch from them is
necessary to produce serious results. Ow-
| Ing to their great shyness accidents are
! very rare. When Cornered they snap and
| bite viciousy, retaining their hold upon
| victim. AS the eyes are adapted only for
use in the water, they strike bindiy when
brought into the air, although living for
! days when removed from their native
element
Many specimens hauled up in fisher
! mems nets have been sent to geological
! gardens. The London Gardens even went
| so far as 10 build a special tank for their
!
| linens either die en- route, or a short time
after being placed in captivity. Seeking
| dark corner of their tank they refuse
! all food and ultimately starve to death.
Around the numerous volcanic islands of
| the Malayan Archipelago these reptiles
! are particularly numerous Frequent
! eruptionS occur among these islands,
! which are hardly more than the body of
| the volcano During the time of an erup-
| tion the few people residing near by take
to the water in their boats to escape the
| rain of ashes and mud 1t is generally IA
case of jumping from the frying pan into
the fire. however. AT such times the sea
| becomes uncOmfortably warm from its
! close proximity TO the burning mountain
| and the sea snakes swim wildly about for
escape. They endeavor to climb over the
! gunwales OF the refugees boats while
they twine their bodies in great masses
about the forward chains.
! When about to lay their eggs. these
| serpents approach the shore. The eggs
are laid above high water mark, and left
to hatch by the heat of the sun. Many
| creatures prey upon the young reptiles
Among their enemies are sharks and
| other large fishes while the adults, in
spite of their death dealing fangs. fall
victims to sea eagles and large gulls At
ter the great typhoons, which are COM
mon in the Philippines and their vicinity
many of these creatures may be found
along the beach, where they have been
cast up during the storm and killed by
the violent pounding of the waves.
The gigantic sea eerpents, so often OBJ
served by Incorporate captains of small
sailing vessels, have no relation to these
creatures. One of the 'sea monsters
seen not long ago and described as under.
going the most remarkable of gyrations
proved TO be d dead anaconda. throwr
overheard from Trinidad steamer.
| -------- -"-e-s--
4 Long Lost Father Found.
From the ST. Louis Globe-Democrat.
Muncie. Ind.-After years of search In