Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1919-09-02
FACTS ABOUT SNAKES
There Are Lots Of Poisonous Ones
But Most, Are Harmless.

are beginning to evince interest in the
,propagation of large plains reptile
the. bull snake"
= .Authority for this statement, con-
tanned In bulletin of the National
Geographic Society, is Raymond L.
Ditmars, who recently returned with
his family from a curious vacation he
spent in the Georgia swamps where his
daughter captured the most deadly
reptile known to that region.
i Mr.. Ditmars became curator Of
reptiles Of the New York Zoo because
his hobby was collecting snakes in
stead of postage stamps or heather
idols. His collection grew too large.
and perhaps to dangerous, for his
uptown apartment and he offered them
to the zoo. But the director would not
even let them into a zoo until Mr.. Dit
mars consented to- be their care taker.
Z Not that Mr. Ditmars has any IL
lusions about the dangers of snakes.
He says. in communication Ito The
Society:
IA great proportion of snakes has
highly specialized. 1t is among these
creatures that we find the most ex-
traordinary and deadly weaponslfor the
: purpose Of killing the prey that are
( Possessed by any Of the vertebrates.
Popular interest is always strong
regarding "serpents Of great size. All
of the very large serpents are mem
bers of a single family, the Boidae.
!, None Is poisonous. and the members
y OF. this family kill their prey by con-
stiiction- 1t to death.
The largest known serpent occurs
In the Malay Peninsula, Java, Borneo,
and Sumatra. This is the regal or
reticulatcd python. It attains a length
of 80 feet. Second in size Is the Indian
python, inhabiting the Indian Penin-
suls, Indo- China, the Malay Peninsula,
and Java. This constructor grows to
: be 25 feet long and is very abundant.
Throughout the temperate and
tropical regions of the globe are spe-
cfes Of serpents of high economic
value. These are mostly the men,
Z bers OF the largest family of snakesJ
the Colubridae. The greater number
Of the non-venomous serpents belong
Ito this family. Our familiar black
snake and king snake are members of
) this family. In some parts Of the
world the rodent-eating species are
protected by. law. Distributed through
cut India Is a large and active species
known as the rat snake. Its usetui
habits are recognized in many areas.
This is likewise the case with close
~ related species found throughout
tropical America. The creole French
call the latter the cribo, and in the
costal regions, where the bubonic
plague has appeared. there is fine
imposed for the killing Of rat eating
snakes. 49,
"Queeriy enough we find some of the
deadliest known serpents belonging to
the same family as the non-venomous
species. The Indian Ocean and the
waters of the tropical Pacific arc in
/ habited by great number of wholly
aquatic, yertible sea serpents that
possess deadly fangs and sometimes
swim in, schools of countless thous-
ands. These snakes have a peddle-
like, tail to assist them in swimming.
Z Another offshoot is the sub family
containing the formidable cobras and
their allies. The members of this i'm
portant sub-family are treacherously
deceptive In appearance. Here we
have an admirable illustration of how
innocent it is to believe a poisonous
snake may be told by the possession
of a heart shaped head. A number Of
the most deadly known snakes be-
long to this sub-family.
Most spectacular of the elapine
serpents are the cobras, or hooded
snakes. The genus Naja, of Indian,
Malaysia, and Africa, contains 10 of
these reptiles. of which the most con-
spicuous' is the Indian or spectaclcd
cobra. Members of several allied
genera rear the body from the ground
and spread the neck in similar fash
ion.
Some Of the African cobras display
a dangerous habit of splitting. poison
at the intruder. The ringhals, genus
Sepedon, of Southern Africa, is a |
pitchy black, exceedingly vicious cobra |
that receives its name from one or two
broad white bands that show on the |
neck when the snake is reared in fight
ing. pose. AS the snake arches its |
neck to glare at the intruder 1t is
liable to eject fine jets of poison for |
q distance Of six or eight feet. These |
deadly streams are dangerously we'll
aimed.
"The Indian cobras seldom eject
their venom In this way. They are the |
most spectacular of their group, owing |
to the vivid markings on the hood
With some specimens these appear
like a grinning death's-head. These
are much sought by the Hindu for his
snake charming exhibitions
in strong contrast to the graceful
elapine poisonous snakes. the men,
bers of the viper family are thick
bodied and forbidding in appearance.
Africa Is the home of the typical vi
pers. and number Of these snakes |
IL t- /. 4