BOA canina, a highly beautiful snake, 'measuring about four feet in length, and being of moderate size or thickness in proportion : the head is large, and shaped like that of a dog ; the colour of the whole animal on the upper parts is a most beautiful Saxon-green, with several short, undulating, transverse white bars down the back, the edges of which are of a deeper or stronger green than the ground colour of the body : the under or abdo minal part is white. This species is a na tive of South America. In the British Museum is an elegant specimen. See Plate Serpentes, fig. 3.
BOA phrygia. Among the whole ser pent tribe, it may be doubted whether there exists a species more truly elegant than the present. Its general size seems to be nearly that of the boa canina, but its length is rather greater in proportion : the ground colour of the whole animal is white, with a very slight cast of yellowish brown on the back, while along the whole upper part is disposed a continued series of black variegations, so conducted as to bear a striking resemblance to an embroi dery in needle-work : the head is of the same form with that of the boa canina, and marked by three narrow black streaks, which, running along the top of the head and the cheeks, join with the embroider ed pattern of the back.
BOA. hortulana, is of a moderate size, measuring only a few feet in length, and being of a slender form ; has obtained its Linnwan title from the singular variega tions on the head, which are of a blackish brown, on a pale ferruginous or yellow ish ground, and in some degree represent the form of a parterre in an old-fashioned garden : the variegations on the body are of similar colour, and are disposed into large circular, and sometimes angular, patches on the sides.
BOA fasciata. It is to Dr. Patrick Rus sel that we owe the knowledge of this re markable species, which is a native of In dia, and is said to be most frequent in the country of Bengal. It is of a yellow co lour, marked with pretty numerous dusky blue transverse bands, continued at equal distances : the head is rather small, and covered in front with large scales : the body is of a trigonal form, the sides slop ing very considerably ; the whole length of the animal is something more than five feet ; the diameter, in the thickest part, being nearly five inches; the length of the tail five inches only, and its termina tion rather obtuse. This snake is among the number of poisonous species ; and RI bite is considered by the Indians as inevi tably fatal. A specimen was brought to Dr. Russel in the month of November, 1788, in an apparently weak and languid state, having been bruised in taking. Be ing set at liberty in a room, it crept slow ly towards an obscure corner, where a chicken being presented to him, he took no particular notice of it, and even suf fered the bird to stand on his back. As he spewed no disposition to bite, his jaws were forcibly opened, and the thigh of the chicken being placed between them, the mouth was so closed over it as to oblige the fangs to act. The bird, when disengaged, shewed immediately symp toms of poison ; and after several ineffec tual efforts to rise, rested with the beak on the ground, the head being seized with trembling. In the space of 20 minutes it laid down on one side, and convulsions soon supervening, it expired within 26 minutes from the bite.