AD: yf A PAP OCME NY AE rts Nash 
16,2 Taylor: Philippine Turtles 131 
Heosemys leytensis sp. nov. Plate 1, figs. 3 and 4; Plate 3, fig. 1. 
Type.—An unnumbered specimen in the zodlogical laboratory, 
University of the Philippines; collected at Cabalian, southern 
Leyte, P. I., by Gregorio Lopez. 
Description of type —Adult male. Head large, anterior part 
covered with smooth undivided skin; skin on posterior part of 
head and in temporal region divided into scalelike elements; 
snout bluntly pointed, nostrils anterior, separated by a distance 
equal to or greater than diameter of a single nostril; eye rather 
small, slit diagonally, diameter of orbit distinctly less than length 
of snout; upper jaw with a distinct hook, slightly bicuspid; trit- 
urating surface of upper jaw narrow, with an indistinct short 
ridge or keel near inner edge; choane between eyes; ear slightly 
farther from eye than eye from end of snout; carapace smooth 
above, rather flattened, with no trace of a keel; vertebral shields 
all wider than long (fifth anomalous and very irregular and 
broken, forming an extra costal between it and fourth costal on 
left side) ; costals four on each side normally, much broader than 
long, much broader than vertebrals; eleven marginals on each 
side; nuchal triangular, broadest posteriorly ; anterior marginals 
touching nuchal, extending far anterior to nuchal and about 
five times as large as nuchal ; supracaudal plates not or but 
slightly notched, partially fused; anterior part of carapace deeply 
notched and serrate; laterally smooth, rounded; posteriorly mod- 
erately serrate; plastron narrower, very much smaller than 
opening of shell, not as long as carapace and not extending as 
far anteriorly, narrowed in front; plastron joined to carapace 
by strong bony suture; no intercalary shields; a small axillary 
and an inguinal shield; narrowest part of bridge contained in 
total length of plastron a little more than two and one-half times; 
gular shields quadrilateral, outer sides parallel for a distance 
equal to about half the length of shield; a large angular notch 
tween gular shields and another between gulars and humerals; 
mutual suture of gulars longer than that of humerals, the latter 
Somewhat less than suture between pectorals; abdominal shields 
» not as broad as pectorals, their mutual suture longer than 
Pectoral or femoral; a deep, more or less semicircular notch be- 
een anal shields, suture between anals abnormal; foreleg with 
ersely somewhat enlarged irregular scales; four prominent 
here on upper edge of arm, the two median much the largest; 
a iee transverse seale on heel of forefoot and a few small scales 
diois, sport Of scale; five digits, each with a strong curved claw, 
fits fully webbed, foot cushionlike; one or two small scales at 
