It is extremely tenacious of life; and though the head may be nearly cut off, and the entrails taken out, it will still move about for a considerable time. It is detested by the farmers on the banks, as it has the habit of carrying off poultry, young calves, or any animal it can get within reach of. It is often seen coiled up in the corner of farm-yards, waiting for its prey. The statement that the anaconda kills its prey by its pestilent breath, is wholly fabulous. Waterton altogether denies the existence of any odour in the snake's breath. It is possible, however, that some species may produce a horrible stench, from a substance secreted in certain glands near the tail--a fact which has probably given rise to the fable. THE BOA. Among the semi-civilised, idolatrous inhabitants of the continent, several snakes were objects of worship. The boa-constrictor especially was regarded as an emblem of strength and power, from its vast size, and the fearful effect produced by its encircling coils as it winds itself round the body of its victim. See the creature as its shining body moves rapidly among the fallen leaves and dried husks in the forest, rather like a stream of brown liquid than a serpent, with skin of varied colours! Onwards it goes, with scarcely a perceptible serpentine movement. Even the huge trunk of a fallen tree does not stop it, but it glides over the impediment in its undeviating course, making the dry twigs crack and fly off with its weight. Now it stops, watching for its prey. An agouti runs by, regardless of the seeming rivulet; but the hapless creature is seized by the serpent's jaws, and those terrible folds surrounding the body--coil above coil--crush the bones, till it becomes a mere mass of flesh. And now it begins to suck in its prey; not lubricating it, as is generally stated, although a large quantity of saliva surrounds the animal while it is descending the monster's throat. After a time the meal is finished, and the serpent--its body greatly distended--remains at rest, unwilling to move, when it may be easily captured by the daring hunter. The body of the boa is of a rich brown colour. A broad chain of large black spots, alternating with white, runs along its back; while the scales round the eyes are set in a circle, separated from those of the lips by two rows of smaller scales. The jaws are not united, but attached to the skull by muscles and ligaments, which enable it to dilate the mouth sufficiently to swallow bodies much larger than itself. The largest grow to a length of thirty feet and upwards; but boas ordinarily do not attain more than twenty feet in length. THE SPOTTED BOA. The boa scytale, or spotted boa, is of a greyish colour, marked with round spots, and scarcely inferior in size to the former. THE RINGED BOA. There is another species--the ringed boa, or boa cenchris--which, though growing to a considerable size, does not attain that of the former species.