Venoms: Venomous Animals and Antivenomous Serum-therapeutics. A. Calmette
subcaudals white, with a longitudinal black band running between them.
Fig. 44.—Pseudelaps krefftii.
Fig. 45.—Pseudelaps harriettæ.
Fig. 46.—Pseudelaps diadema.
Total length, 255 millimetres; tail 33.
Habitat: Queensland.
(4) P. harriettæ (fig. 45).—Nasal shield entire, in contact with or narrowly separated from the præocular; 1 + 2 temporals; 176–193 ventrals; 29–35 subcaudals.
Colour dark brown, with a light longitudinal line on each scale; a long yellow blotch on the nape, and, connected with this, a yellow ring round the snout; ventrals and subcaudals brown or black, edged with white.
Total length, 415 millimetres; tail 45.
Habitat: Queensland.
(5) P. diadema (fig. 46).—Nasal shield entire, widely separated from the præocular; 2 + 2 temporals; third and fourth upper labials entering the eye; 164–203 ventrals; 40–62 subcaudals. Colour pale brown or reddish, with a brown edging to each scale forming a reticulate pattern; a yellow cross-band on the occiput; belly uniformly white.
Total length, 600 millimetres; tail 80.
Habitat: Eastern, Northern, and Western Australia.
(6) P. warro.—Characters the same as in the previous species; 143 ventrals. Colour brown; a broad lunate black collar on the nape; head black above, but paler than the collar.
Habitat: Port Curtis, Queensland.
(7) P. sutherlandi.—Characters as before. Scales on the body in 17 rows; 160 ventrals; 40 subcaudals. Colour red-brown on the back, yellow on the belly; a broad lunate black collar on the nape, with a lighter edging; light bars across the head, body, and tail.
Habitat: Norman River, Queensland.
(d) Diemenia.
Fig. 47.—Diemenia psammophis.
Fig. 48.—Diemenia olivacea. (Northern Australia and New Guinea). (After Krefft.)
Fig. 49.—Diemenia textilis.
Maxillary bones extending forwards as far as the palatines, with a pair of large grooved poison-fangs, followed, after an interspace, by 7–15 small grooved teeth; anterior mandibular teeth much elongated, resembling poison-fangs. Head scarcely distinct from the neck; eyes rather large, with round pupils; nasal shield entire or divided; frontal elongate.
Body cylindrical; scales smooth, in 15–19 rows (more on the neck). Tail moderate or long; subcaudals all or for the most part in 2 rows.
Coloration very variable, orange-yellow, olive, red-brown, or pale brown.
Average length, 1,000–1,700 millimetres.
Habitat: South-eastern New Guinea, and Australia.
Seven species of this genus are known, divided into two groups as follows:—
(1) Scales on the body in 15 rows.
D. psammophis. (fig. 47).—Internasal shields at least half as long as the præfrontals.
D. torquata.—Internasals more than half as long as the præfrontals.
D. olivacea. (fig. 48).—Internasals not more than half as long as the præfrontals; snout broad.
Fig. 50.—Diemenia nuchalis.
(2) Scales in 17 or 19 rows.
D. modesta.—154–165 ventrals.
D. textilis (Brown Snake, fig. 49).—190–232 ventrals.
D. nuchalis (fig. 50).—184–224 ventrals.
(e) Pseudechis.
Maxillary bones extending forwards as far as the palatines, with a pair of large grooved poison-fangs followed by 2–5 small solid teeth; anterior mandibular teeth long. Head distinct from the neck; eyes rather small, with round pupils; nostril between two nasal shields. Body cylindrical. Scales smooth, in 17–23 rows (more on the neck). Tail moderate; subcaudals in 2 rows, or partly single, partly in 2 rows.
Fig. 51.—Pseudechis porphyriacus.
Total length, 1,500–2,000 millimetres, sometimes more.
Habitat: Australia and New Guinea.
This genus includes eight species.
(1) P. porphyriacus (Black Snake; fig. 51).—Frontal shield longer than broad; 180–200 ventrals; 50–60 subcaudals.
Colour black on the back; outer row of scales red at the base; ventrals red, edged with black.
(2) P. cupreus.—199–210 ventrals; 57–72 subcaudals.
Colour coppery above, brown or orange below, all the scales and shields edged with brown.
(3) P. australis.—199–220 ventrals; 57–70 subcaudals; frontal shield once and two-thirds to twice as long as broad.
Colour pale brown on the back, yellowish on the belly.
(4) P. darwiniensis.—Frontal as broad as long; 212 ventrals; 54–64 subcaudals.
Colour reddish-brown; head pale brown; belly yellowish-white.
(5) P. papuanus.—Scales in 19–21 rows (26 or 27 on the neck); 221–224 ventrals; 49–55 subcaudals.
Colour uniform black; chin white.
(6) P. scutellatus.—Subcaudal shields in 2 rows; scales on the body in 23 rows (25–30 on the neck); 230–233 ventrals; 61–78 subcaudals.
Colour pale brown or dark brown; snout and cheeks pale brown or yellowish; belly yellow.
(7) P. microlepidotus.—30–36 scales across the neck, 23 across the middle of the body; 232–237 ventrals; 61–66 pairs of subcaudals.
Colour dark brown on the back, yellowish-grey on the belly; head sometimes blackish.
(8) P. ferox.—Snout very broadly rounded. Scales on the body in 23 rows; 235 ventrals; 60 pairs of subcaudals.
Colour black above, yellowish beneath.
(f) Denisonia.
Maxillary bones prolonged as far as the palatines, with a pair of large grooved poison-fangs, followed by 3–5 small solid teeth; anterior mandibular teeth greatly developed. Head fairly distinct from the body; eyes small, with round or vertically elliptic pupils; nasal shield entire or divided. Body cylindrical; scales smooth, in 15–19 rows;