Amphibious
Turtle, or To*
toise.
Frogs.
Serpents.
- The kayman of the Dutch, the 'bodya óf the Malays, and the bóyo or
bdjul of the Javans, which abounds along the shores and in the principal
rivers of the island, resembles more the. crocodile of Egypt than that of the
Ganges or the American • alligator. The-character of-the lacerta crocodiles*
as given in the Systema Naturae, applies .to the Javan crocodile, wjth .this
difference, that in the latter the two crests of the tail coalesce towards the
extremity, in which respect it‘agrees with that of the .Ganges ;.Jbut its head
and jaws are broad, and rounded. In,its manners, habits, and '<jk$tr,uct-i,V3
qualities,, it .resembles the largest animals of this genus. Next’ to the crocodile
in size is the bèwak of the Malays) or menydwak or\lselira of-the JavansT, .It
sometimes attains the length of six or seven feet, and lives near-the b.ank;s
of, rivers and marshes. Its character agrees with • .thos^oj^jg^ lacerta
monitor.- It is erroneously denominated the guana-by. Europeans. The
eggs of this , animal, as well as of the- crocodile, are eaten by. the-natives*
and- the fat is collected for medical purposes.. A small lizard,, the burtglon-^
of the Javans, is erroneously called~the cameleon,l in qqnsequence of; the
property of changing its colour. , At 'has the specific ■ cjh^racters fchq
guana,-but is much smaller, seldom. exceeding eighteen,pr twenty inches,
in.length^ There are various .other lizards.
Two varieties ,of_the turtle, 'pényu -and pênyu kombang, are found in .the-,
seas surrounding Java. Both yield the substance called'.tortOjse^hell^ hat;
they-are seldom taken of sufficient size to render it valuablethecfleshjsi^
excellent. • Another kind, _of which the 3sppcjes; -is unknown, • Renders!a,'
thicker, shell., Kura is the name of the common land-tortoise, vdiieh -i&.
found very abundantly in particular districts.
.Besides the'rana esculenta, green frog Qeodok iju of the Javans)'iwhicbis
frequently eaten, and the kodok benju, there -is Abe common .toad-,-, kbiok^
and the bdnkong,and. kintal. The frog- fish (rarta paradosa))- or^ff variety p f
it,.is also foünd on the island, and has been,exhibited in the,same supposed
metamorphosis' as in, other countries. No noxious quality -of .any-. ,pf thèSse
animals is here)known. ,
It js uncertain -whether the boa constrictor be found on. Java. The:
serpent usually called the Mar sdwa is a'species of coluber, and-has beert;
described in one of the volumes of;the-Batavian Transactions; but. several
other species are found which arrive at a very large; size. One ;of them,
the ular Idnang, is very'much dreaded;by; the natives,- and said to be:
poisonous. Of thé Mar sate«'there are several varieties, one of which*
meat
Mm sdwa.-mdchan, '-is imostifbeautifullyj ^negated. Upwards of. twenty .
serp en ts 'ate,' enumerated onousi The Mar Umpe, is, found at or .near
the-(discharge : of. large riversuritoithe ucean*Land? is more abundant. in some
distriMsflthan1 in *'others.^' ThiS/is-gEeatl^^rfeaded byi)"thfe^hatives ^itsibite
howeversris!irarely.mortal, and/the. effectsl'^e^comparatively slow, death
seldom occurtingKe^jithin: twenty^our tfhoursffrom theibneioffis Infliction.
No remedies iw,highi'deserve m.othpf an^l^nbwn»jtiy tfie natiyes^pharms .and
supers^iousSapphcations^aie .generally fres©r,teLd tp, The most remarkable
serpdnfa is the plar kdduf, ov kdrang^ -The^M^-ftinaug^and some of the-
varieties May,sdwa are slender, and p|ssqs§£Gpri^emble agility^ According
to thp.a.cGni'ffl^feihe nati^gsftitbey frequently Jifcend trees, and suspending
themselyesSy thjj| stremifyi^'f .„their tail, se^e'ffpou small animals passing
below j b p t^ e , truq^/flr-*W3e)a.^fthe Eastern Javans is .»slow,--. thick* rarid
un wiSdm'l^^^KsWhicli.' could illustrate its supposed pp^erf of fascination
has been, noticed..,
<1 i-Qf itfejfis’h most pppmonly, uhqd fer %qd,by, the natives, many .which Fishe».
(are^excellent and -abundant, J/Mrty-four sneeies^efyiyer.pfish., sevens^found
!i>n pools or stagnant waters,,’andjSixteen^sea fish, are already enumerated
by Dr. HOrsfield.,'i/lThe classes of amphibia and .micekt doubtless, .
. afford many new^bj^,cts investigation. Valentvn^nurnera||s&ve. hun-
.dfM^ahd1 twenty-eight uncommon kinds of jfish -founds ij^j^j%a|;eis,of the
Eastern Islands.1
* JHoney and wax are produced by. thr espepiestfjc® heps, inhabiting the infeot».
largest forests, but they are both collected- in. very in consider able^ quantitieg.
Bees are occasionally, domesticated .by Me| Arabs and Indians near the large?
settlements, but never by fbe natives. Silk-wor-ms were pnce intrOducedj-by
the-tmtcmnear Batavia, but attention to them did.noLexte'nd:,among the
natives. The ehrysalis of the large atlas affords 1a-eoj.mq;silk^ yfhicb^is
however not coltecteffffar, use. To,‘the4,fruity sey^raL'msecis*’- and to the
corn wffifffin the ear, a peculiar species) generally^,k,nown byimeviname
of ’walang-sdngit, are ifipst destructive»/, The -jaftgA.has; in- ;sqm©vfea£s
dqj^royed the growth of-Ayhole districts, and occasioned .partial scarcity.
The natives attempt, in some instances, to extirpate it by^burning chaff and
brimstone in the fields. There are (scor,pl<fns- and , centipedes^, -but their
bite is considered of. little consequence: the natives* i generally apply a
cataplasm of, onions to the wound. The class qffnsepts'affords many new
pbjebtsjV