Jerdon; is most probably peculiar to Ceylon.
Loriculus asiaticus. The small parroquet, abundant in various districts.
Palæornis Calthropæ. Layard's purple-headed parroquet, found at Kandy,
is a very handsome bird, flying in flocks, and resting on the summits of
the very highest trees. Dr. Kelaart states that it is the only parroquet
of the Neuera-ellia range.
Megalaima flavifrons. The yellow-headed barbet, is not uncommon.
Megalaima rubricapilla, is found in most parts of the island.
Picus gymnophthalmus. Layard's woodpecker. The smallest of the species,
was discovered near Colombo, amongst jak-trees.
Brachypternus Ceylonus. The Ceylon woodpecker, is found in abundance
near Neuera-ellia.
Brachypternus rubescens. The red woodpecker.
Centropus chlororhynchus. The yellow-billed cuckoo, was detected by Mr.
Layard in dense jungle near Colombo and Avisavelle.
Phoenicophaus pyrrhocephalus. The malkoha, is confined to the southern
highlands.
Treron Pompadoura. The Pompadour pigeon. "The Prince of Canino has shown
that this is a totally distinct bird from Tr. flavogularis, with which
it was confounded: it is much smaller, with the quantity of maroon
colour on the mantle greatly reduced."--Paper by Mr. BLYTH, _Mag. Nat.
Hist._ p. 514: 1857.
Carpophaga Torringtoniæ. Lady Torrington's pigeon; a very handsome
pigeon discovered in the highlands by Dr. Kelaart. It flies high in long
sweeps, and makes its nest on the loftiest trees. Mr. Blyth is of
opinion that it is no more than a local race, barely separable from C.
Elphinstonii of the Nilgiris and Malabar coast.
Carpophaga pusilla. The little-hill dove a migratory species found by
Mr. Layard in the mountain zone, only appearing with the ripened fruit
of the teak, banyan, &c., on which they feed.
Gallus Lafayetti.--The Ceylon jungle fowl. The female of this handsome
bird was figured by Mr. GRAY (_Ill. Ind. Zool._) under the name of G.
Stanleyi. The cock bird had long been lost to naturalists, until a
specimen was forwarded by Dr. Templeton to Mr. Blyth, who at once
recognised it as the long-looked-for male of Mr. Gray's recently
described female. It is abundant in all the uncultivated portions of
Ceylon; coming out into the open spaces to feed in the mornings and
evenings. Mr. Blyth states that there can be no doubt that Hardwicke's
published figure refers to the hen of this species, long afterwards
termed G. Lafayetti.
Galloperdix bicalcaratus. Not uncommon in suitable situations.
CHAP. IX.
REPTILES.
LIZARDS. _Iguana_.--One of the earliest, if not the first remarkable
animal to startle a stranger on arriving in Ceylon, whilst wending his
way from Point-de-Galle to Colombo, is a huge lizard of from four to
five feet in length, the _Talla-goy[=a]_ of the Singhalese, and
Iguana[1] of the Europeans. It may be seen at noonday searching for ants
and insects in the middle of the highway and along the fences; when
disturbed, but by no means alarmed, by the approach of man, it moves off
to a safe distance; and, the intrusion being at an end, it returns again
to the occupation in which it had been interrupted. Repulsive as it is
in appearance, it is perfectly harmless, and is hunted down by dogs in
the maritime provinces, and its delicate flesh, which is believed to be
a specific in dysentery, is converted into curry, and its skin into
shoes. When seized, it has the power of inflicting a smart blow with its
tail. The Talla-goy[=a] lives in almost any convenient hollow, such as a
hole in the ground, or a deserted nest of the termites; and some small
ones, which frequented my garden at Colombo, made their retreat in the
heart of a decayed tree.
[Footnote 1: Monitor dracæna, _Linn._ Among the barbarous nostrums of
the uneducated natives, both Singhalese and Tamil, is the tongue of the
iguana, which they regard as a specific for consumption, if plucked from
the living animal and swallowed whole.]
A still larger species, the _Kabara-goy[=a]_[1], is partial to marshy
ground, and when disturbed upon land, will take refuge in the nearest
water. From the somewhat eruptive appearance of the yellow blotches on
its scales, a closely allied species, similarly spotted, formerly
obtained amongst naturalists the name of _Monitor exanthematicus_, and
it is curious that the native appellation of this one, _kabara_[2], is
suggestive of the same idea. The Singhalese, on a strictly homoeopathic
principle, believe that its fat, externally applied, is a cure for
cutaneous disorders, but that taken inwardly it is poisonous. The
skilfulness of the Singhalese in their preparation of poisons, and their
addiction to using them, are unfortunately notorious traits in the
character of the rural population. Amongst these preparations, the one
which above all others excites the utmost dread, from the number of
murders attributed to its agency, is the potent kabara-tel--a term which
Europeans sometimes corrupt into _cobra-tel_, implying that the venom is
obtained from the hooded-snake; whereas it professes to be extracted
from the "kabara-goy[=a]." Such is the bad renown of this formidable
poison, that an individual suspected of having it in his possession, is
cautiously shunned by his neighbours. Those especially who are on
doubtful terms with him, suspect their servants lest they should be
suborned to mix kabara-tel in the curry. So subtle is the virus supposed
to be, that one method of administering it, is to introduce it within
the midrib of a leaf of betel, and close the orifice with chunam; and,
as it is an habitual act of courtesy for one Singhalese on meeting
another to offer the compliment of a betel-leaf, which it would be
rudeness to refuse, facilities are thus afforded for presenting the
concealed drug. It is curious that to this latent suspicion has been
traced the origin of a custom universal amongst the natives, of nipping
off with the thumb nail the thick end of the stem before chewing the
betel.
[Footnote 1: Hydrosaurus salvator, _Laur_. Tail compressed; fingers
long; nostrils near the extremity of the snout. A black band on each
temple; round yellow spots disposed in transverse series on the back.
Teeth with the crown compressed and notched.]
[Footnote 2: In the _Mahawanso_ the hero Tissa, is said to have been
"afflicted with a cutaneous complaint which made his skin scaly like
that of the _godho_."--Ch. xxiv. p. 148. "Godho" is the Pali name for
the Kabara-goy[=a].]
[Illustration: THE KABARA-GOYA.]
In the preparation of this mysterious compound, the unfortunate
Kabara-goya is forced to take a painfully prominent part. The receipt,
as written down by a Kandyan, was sent to me from Kornegalle, by Mr.
Morris, the civil officer of that district; and in dramatic arrangement
it far outdoes the cauldron of _Macbeth's_ witches. The ingredients are
extracted from venomous snakes, the cobra de capello, the Carawilla, and
the Tic-polonga, by making incisions in the head of these reptiles and
suspending them over a chattie to collect the poison as it flows. To
this, arsenic and other drugs are added, and the whole is "boiled in a
human skull, with the aid of the three Kabara-goyas, which are tied on
three sides of the fire, with their heads directed towards it, and
tormented by whips to make them hiss, so that the fire may blaze. The
froth from their lips is then added to the boiling mixture, and so soon
as an oily scum rises to the surface, the _kabara-tel_ is complete."
It is obvious that arsenic is the main ingredient in the poison, and Mr.
Morris reported to me that the mode of preparing it, described above,
was actually practised in his district. This account was transmitted by
him apropos to the murder of a Mohatal[1] and his wife, which had been
committed with the _kabara-tel_, and was then under investigation.
Before commencing the operation of preparing the poison, a cock has to
be sacrificed to the _yakhos_ or demons.
[Footnote 1: A native head-man of low rank.]
This ugly lizard is itself regarded with such aversion by the
Singhalese, that if a _kabara_ enter a house or walk over the roof, it
is regarded as an omen of ill fortune, sickness, or death; and in order
to avert the evil, a priest is employed to go through a rhythmical
incantation; one portion of which consists in the repetition of the
words
Kabara goyin wan d[=o]sey
Ada palayan e d[=o]sey.
"These are the inflictions caused by the Kabara-goya--let them now be
averted!"
It is one of the incidents that serve to indicate that Ceylon may belong
to a separate circle of physical geography, that this lizard, though
found to the eastward in Burmah[1], has not hitherto been discovered in
the Dekkan or Hindustan.
[Footnote 1: In corroboration of the view propounded elsewhere (see pp.
7, 84, &c), and opposed to the popular belief that Ceylon, at some
remote period, was detached from the continent of India by the
interposition of the sea, a list of reptiles will be found at p. 319,
including not only individual species, but whole genera peculiar to the
island, and not to be found on the mainland. See a paper by Dr. A.
GÜNTHER on _The Geog. Distribution of Reptiles_. Magaz. Nat. Hist. for
March, 1859, p. 230.]
[Illustration: CALOTES OPHIOMACHUS]
_Blood-suckers_.--The lizards already mentioned, however, are but the
stranger's introduction to innumerable varieties of others, all most
attractive in their sudden movements, and some unsurpassed in the
brilliancy of their colouring, which bask on banks, dart over rocks, and
peer curiously out of the chinks of every ruined wall. In all their
motions there is that vivid and brief energy, the rapid but restrained
action associated with their limited power of respiration, which
justifies the accurate picture of--
"The green lizard, rustling thro' the grass,
And up the fluted shaft, _with short, quick, spring_
To vanish in the chinks which time has made."[1]
[Footnote 1: ROGERS' _Pæstum._]
The most beautiful of the race is the _green calotes_[1], in length
about twelve inches, which, with the exception of a few dark streaks
about the head, is as brilliant as the purest emerald or malachite.
Unlike its congeners of the same family, it never alters this dazzling
hue; whilst many of them possess, but in a less degree, the power, like
the chameleon, of exchanging their ordinary colours for others less
conspicuous. One of the most remarkable features in the physiognomy of
those lizards is the prominence of their cheeks. This results from the
great development of the muscles of the jaws; the strength of which is
such that they can crush the hardest integuments of the beetles on which
they feed. The calotes will permit its teeth to be broken, rather than
quit its hold of a stick into which it may have struck them. It is not
provided, like so many other tropical lizards, with a gular sac or
throat-pouch, capable of inflation when in a state of high excitement.
The tail, too, is rounded, not compressed, thus clearly indicating that
its habits are those of a land-animal.
[Footnote 1: Calotes sp.]
The _Calotes versicolor_; and another, the _Calotes ophioimachus_, of
which a figure is attached, possess in a remarkable degree the faculty,
above alluded to, of changing their hue. The head and neck, when the
animal is irritated or hastily swallowing its food, become of a
brilliant red (whence the latter species has acquired the name of the
"blood-sucker"), whilst the usual tint of the rest of the body is
converted into pale yellow.[1] The _sitana_[2], and a number of others,
exhibit similar phenomena.
[Footnote 1: The characteristics by which the _Calotes ophiomachus_ may
be readily recognised, are a small crest formed by long spines running
on each side of the neck to above the ear, coupled with a green
ground-colour of the scales. Many specimens are uniform, others banded
transversely with white, and others again have a black band on each side
of the neck.]
[Footnote 2: Sitana Ponticereana, _Cuv_.]
The lyre-headed lizard[1], which is not uncommon in the woods about
Kandy, is more bulky than any of the species of Calotes, and not nearly
so active in its movements.
[Footnote 1: Lyriocephalus scutatus, _Linn._]
As usually observed it is of a dull greenish brown, but when excited its
back becomes a rich olive green, leaving the head yellowish: the
underside of the body is of a very pale blue, almost approaching white.
The open mouth exhibits the fauces of an intense vermilion tint; so
that, although extremely handsome, this lizard presents, from its
extraordinarily shaped head and threatening gestures, a most malignant
aspect. It is, however, perfectly harmless.
_Chameleon_.--The true chameleon[1] is found, but not in great numbers,
in the dry districts to the north of Ceylon, where it frequents the
trees, in slow pursuit of its insect prey; but compensated for the
sluggishness of its other movements, by the electric rapidity of its
extensible tongue. Apparently sluggish in its general habits, the
chameleon rests motionless on a branch, from which its varied hues
render it scarcely distinguishable in colour; and there patiently awaits
the approach of the insects on which it feeds. Instantly on their
appearance its wonderful tongue comes into play.
[Footnote 1: Chameleo vulgaris, _Daud_.]
[Illustration: TONGUE OF CHAMELEON.]
Though ordinarily concealed, it is capable of protrusion till it exceeds
in length the whole body of the creature. No sooner does an incautious
fly venture within reach than the extremity of this treacherous weapon
is disclosed, broad and cuneiform, and covered with a viscid fluid; and
this, extended to its full length, is darted at its prey with an
unerring aim, and redrawn within the jaws with a rapidity that renders
the act almost invisible.[1]
[Footnote 1: Prof. RYMER JONES, art. _Reptilia_, in TODD'S _Cyclop. of
Anat_. vol. iv. pt. i. p. 292.]
Whilst the faculty of this creature to assume all the colours of the
rainbow has attracted the wonder of all ages, sufficient attention has
hardly been given to the imperfect sympathy which subsists between the
two lobes of its brain, and the two sets of nerves that permeate the
opposite sides of its frame. Hence, not only has each of the eyes an
action quite independent of the other, but one side of its body appears
to be sometimes asleep whilst the other is vigilant and active; one will
assume a green tinge whilst the opposite one is red; and it is said that
the chameleon is utterly unable to swim, from the incapacity of the
muscles of the two sides to act in concert.
_Ceratophora_.--This which till lately was an unique lizard, known by
only two specimens, one in the British Museum, and another in that of
Leyden, was ascertained by Dr. Kelaart, about five years ago, to be a
native of the higher Kandyan hills, where it is sometimes seen in the
older trees in pursuit of insect larvæ. The first specimen brought to
Europe was called _Ceratophora Stoddartii_, after the name of its
finder; and the recent discovery of several others in the National
Collection has enabled me, by the aid of Dr. A. Günther, to add some
important facts to their history.
This lizard is remarkable for having no external ear; and it has
acquired its generic name from the curious horn-like process on the
extremity of the nose. This horn, as it is found in mature males of ten
inches in length, is five lines long, conical, pointed, and slightly
curved; a miniature form of the formidable weapon, from which the
_Rhinoceros_ takes its name. But the comparison does not hold good
either from an anatomical or a physiological point of view. For, whilst
the horn of the rhinoceros is merely a dermal production, a
conglomeration of hairs cemented into one dense mass as hard as bone,
and answering the purpose of a defensive weapon, besides being used for
digging up the roots on which the animal lives; the horn of the
_ceratophora_ is formed of a soft, spongy substance, coated by the
rostral shield, which is produced into a kind of sheath. Although
flexible, it always remains erect, owing to the elasticity of its
substance. Not having access to a living specimen, which would afford
the opportunity of testing conjecture, we are left to infer from the
internal structure of this horn, that it is an erectile organ which, in
moments of irritation, will swell like the comb of a cock. This opinion
as to its physiological nature is confirmed by the remarkable
circumstance that, like the rudimentary comb of the hen and young cocks,
the female and the immature males of the _ceratophora_ have the horn
exceedingly small. In mature females of eight inches in length (and the
females appear always to be smaller than the males), the horn is only
one half or one line long; while in immature males five inches in
length, it is one line and a half.
[Illustration: CERATOPHORA TENNENTII and C. STODDARTII]
Among the specimens sent from Ceylon by Dr. Kelaart, and now in the
British Museum, there is one which so remarkably differs from _C.
Stoddartii_, that it attracted my attention, by the peculiar form of
this rostral appendage. Dr. Günther pronounced it to be a new species;
and Dr. Gray concurring in this opinion, they have done me the honour to
call it _Ceratophora Tennentii_. Its "horn" somewhat resembles the comb
of a cock not only in its internal structure, but also in its external
appearance; it is nearly six lines long by two broad, slightly
compressed, soft, flexile, and extensible, and covered with a
corrugated, granular skin. It bears no resemblance to the depressed
rostral hump of _Lyriocephalus_, and the differences of the new species
from the latter lizard may be easily seen from the annexed drawing and
the notes given below.[1]
[Footnote 1: The specimen in the British Museum is apparently an adult
male, ten inches long, and is, with regard to the distribution of the
scales and the form of the head very similar to _C. Stoddartii_. The
posterior angles of the orbit are not projecting, but there is a small
tubercle behind them; and a pair of somewhat larger tubercles on the
neck. The gular sac is absent. There are five longitudinal quadrangular,
imbricate scales on each side of the throat; and the sides of the body
present a nearly horizontal series of similar scales. The scales on the
median line of the back scarcely form a crest; it is, however distinct
on the nape of the neck. The scales on the belly, on the extremities,
and on the tail are slightly keeled. Tail nearly round. This species is
more uniformly coloured than _C. Stoddartii_; it is greenish, darker on
the sides.]
_Geckoes_.--The most familiar and attractive of the lizard class are the
_Geckoes_[1], that frequent the sitting-rooms, and being furnished with
pads to each toe, they are enabled to ascend perpendicular walls and
adhere to glass and ceilings. Being nocturnal in their habits, the pupil
of the eye, instead of being circular as in the diurnal species, is
linear and vertical like that of the cat. As soon as evening arrives,
the geckoes are to be seen in every house in keen and crafty pursuit of
their prey; emerging from the chinks and recesses where they conceal
themselves during the day, to search for insects that then retire to
settle for the night. In a boudoir where the ladies of my family spent
their evenings, one of these familiar and amusing little creatures had
its hiding-place behind a gilt picture frame. Punctually as the candles
were lighted, it made its appearance on the wall to be fed with its
accustomed crumbs; and if neglected, it reiterated it sharp, quick call
of _chic, chic, chit,_ till attended to. It was of a delicate gray
colour, tinged with pink; and having by accident fallen on a work-table,
it fled, leaving part of its tail behind it, which, however, it
reproduced within less than a month. This faculty of reproduction is
doubtless designed to enable the creature to escape from its assailants:
the detaching of the limb is evidently its own act; and it is
observable, that when reproduced, the tail generally exhibits some
variation from the previous form, the diverging spines being absent, the
new portion covered with small square uniform scales placed in a cross
series, and the scuta below being seldom so distinct as in the original
member.[2] In an officer's quarters in the fort of Colombo, a geckoe had
been taught to come daily to the dinner-table, and always made its
appearance along with the dessert. The family were absent for some
months, during which the house underwent extensive repairs, the roof
having been raised, the walls stuccoed, and the ceilings whitened. It
was naturally surmised that so long a suspension of its accustomed
habits would have led to the disappearance of the little lizard; but on
the return of its old friends, it made its entrance as usual at their
first dinner the instant the cloth was removed.
[Footnote 1: Hemidactylus maculatus, _Dum_. et _Bib_., H. Leschenaultii,
_Dum_, et _Bib_; H. frenatus, _Schlegel_. Of these the last is very
common in the houses of Colombo. Colour, grey; sides with small
granules; thumb short; chin-shields four; tail rounded with transverse
series of small spines; femoral and preanal pores in a continuous line.
GRAY, _Lizard_, p. 155.]
[Footnote 2: _Brit. Mus. Cat._ p. 143; KELAART's _Prod. Faun. Zeylan.,_
p. 183.]
_Crocodile._--The Portuguese in India, like the Spaniards in South
America, affixed the name of _lagarto_ to the huge reptiles that
infested the rivers and estuaries of both continents; and to the present
day the Europeans in Ceylon apply the term _alligator_ to what are in
reality _crocodiles_, which literally swarm in the still waters and
tanks in the low country, but rarely frequent rapid streams, and have
never been found in the marshes among the hills. The differences,
however, between the two, when once ascertained, are sufficiently
marked, to prevent their being afterwards confounded. The head of the
alligator is broader and the snout less prolonged, and the canine teeth
of the under jaw, instead of being received into foramina in the upper,
as in the crocodile, fit into furrows on each side of it. The legs of
the alligator, too, are not denticulated, and the feet are only
semi-palmate.
The following drawing exhibits a cranium of each.
[Illustration: SKULLS OF ALLIGATOR AND CROCODILE]
The instincts of the crocodiles in Ceylon do not lead to any variation
from the habits of those found in other countries. There would appear to
be two well-distinguished species found in the island, the
_Eli-kimboola_[1], the Indian crocodile, inhabiting the rivers and
estuaries throughout the low countries of the coasts, attaining the
length of sixteen or eighteen feet, and ready to assail man when pressed
by hunger; and the marsh-crocodile[2], which lives exclusively in fresh
water, frequenting the tanks in the northern and central provinces, and
confining its attacks to the smaller animals: in length it seldom
exceeds twelve or thirteen feet. Sportsmen complain that their dogs are
constantly seized by both species; and water-fowl, when shot, frequently
disappear before they can be secured by the fowler.[3] It is generally
believed in Ceylon that, in the case of larger animals, the crocodile
abstains from devouring them till the commencement of decomposition
facilitates the operation of swallowing. To assist in this, the natives
assure me that the reptile contrives to fasten the carcase behind the
roots of a mangrove or some other convenient tree and tears off each
piece by a backward spring.
[Footnote 1: Crocodilus biporcatus. _Cuvier_.]
[Footnote 2: Crododilus palustris, _Less_.]
[Footnote 3: In Siam the flesh of the crocodile is sold for food in the
markets and bazaars, "Un jour je vis plus de cinquante crocodiles,
petits et grands, attachés aux colonnes de leurs maisons. Ils es vendent
la chair comme on vendrait de la chair de porc, mais à bien meilleur
marché."-PALLEGOIX, _Siam_, vol. i. p. 174.]