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Sonora Coral Snake
Colouration.—The general character of the pattern is quite distinct from that of the Harlequin Snake. The colours are disposed in rather broad rings of crimson or brick-red, and equally broad rings of black, which are separated by yellow rings. Compared with E. fulvius, however, the red and the black rings will be seen to be proportionately narrower and the yellow rings much broader. On the forward portion of the body, above, the red rings are very narrowly edged with black. They contain no black spots or blotches as do the red areas on the allied species.
Dimensions.—The only specimen of this rare snake available to the writer for measurement, has not attained its full size, but the figures given well demonstrate the general proportions:
Distribution.—Central and southern Arizona and Sonora, Mexico.
The size is smaller than that of the preceding species. The tail is short and blunt.
The forward portion of the head is black. On the back of the head is a broad band of yellow, followed by the first red ring of the body pattern. The latter character at once distinguishes this species from the Harlequin Snake.
There are three broad black rings on the tail, separated by narrower ones of yellow.
Total Length . . . . . 15 inches.
Length of Tail . . . . . 1 1/8 inches.
Greatest Diameter . . . . . 5/16 inches.
Width of Head . . . . . 1/4 inches.
Length of Head . . . . . 3/8 inches.
The Thick-bodied Poisonous Snakes of the New World--Serpents Distinguished by Their Long Fangs, which Fold Against the Roof of the Mouth when it is Closed
Classification and Distribution.--The family Viperidae is of moderate size. It is composed of about one hundred and twenty-five species, representing thirteen genera. The species are scattered over the temperate and tropical portions of both the Eastern and the Western Hemispheres. The Viperidae is divided into two sub-families, these technically termed the Viperinae (the True Vipers), the species of which are found only in the Old World, and the Crotalinae, or "Pit Vipers," occurring in both the Old and the New World, but attaining their greatest size and variability of form in the latter. Thus, in North America, all of the thick-bodied poisonous snakes are "Pit Vipers" or Crotaline serpents. The members of both sub-families may be recognised by the flat triangular head, very distinct from the neck and the elliptical (cat-like) pupil of the eye. The top of the head, with the majority of the species, is covered with very small, granular scales. Some show regularly arranged head shields of much the same formation and character as those of the colubrine snakes.
The Pit Vipers: The sub-family Crotalinoe, containing the rattlesnakes, the copperhead snake, the moccasin and the "fer-de-lance" has acquired the popular title for its members--the Pit Vipers--owing to a peculiar development seen with all the species. This consists of a deep pit, situated between the eye and the nostril. The orifice is lined with a delicate epidermis and connects with a well-developed nerve extending backward to the brain. That this pit is of some use to the snake, seems very probable, when the attendant nerve development is considered. Many investigations have been attempted, with the result of complicated anatomical repetitions in the line of description, but with no actual proof of the function of this organ. Nor do observations of living snakes aid in solving the problem. It is intimated by some scientists that the "pit" is an organ of hearing, but there is little to back this assertion. The Pit Vipers possess the same rudimentary, internal ears as do other snakes, and evince no superiorty in distinguishing sound over serpents observed generally. Dr. Leonhard Stejneger, Curator of Reptiles in the United States National Museum, favours the idea of a sixth sense, in relation to the Pit, and explains that man may never comprehend the nature of a sense which he himself does not possess.
Dissection reveals the Pit to be more complicated than seen by external examination. It extends backward toward the eye and widens into a second opening, close to the eye-ball. A horse-hair inserted close to the forward portion of the eye-ball will appear through the large opening between the eye and the nostril. Suffice it to say with these few words of explanation, that the object of the Pit of the Crotalinae, remains to be discovered, but in identification, it serves as a constant and valuable guide.