34 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF [Jan., 



In regard to the geographical distribution of these "forms," we 



have already spoken of their limited range. Although the museum 



has a series from Tampa Bay and Key West, no topotype of N. c. 



tceniata is at hand Nevertheless, some of the specimens before us 



from Tampa Bay and Key West show most of the characters of this 



supposed race. 



The Brood of Young. 



The variability in color characters of the adults finds correlation 

 in a brood of fifteen young born from a specimen similar to the 

 typical N. c. compressicauda. The mother was taken alive by 

 Mr. A. G. Reynolds and the young were born in captivity. They 

 are distinctly dichromatic; one group, ten in number, being like the 

 adult but with generally lighter ground color — in other words, 

 approaching N. c. walkeri — while the others, five in number, are 

 uniformly straw-color, as seen in some of the other adults. The 

 olilique dorsal bands of the young vary somewhat in width, but 

 there is not as much variation as we see in the adults. In fact, the 

 young of this brood present in color only two or possibly three of 

 the phases which are seen in the older individuals. 



In comparing the scutation of the young water snakes, on the 

 other hand, we find a great variability of the head shields and the 

 body scale counts. The dorsal rows have a constant number, 

 twenty-one, the same as the mother. The range of the ventral- 

 subcaudal scale count is: 



126 132 129.06 



^ - -82"' ^^^^^S" "74:2- 



Since six of this brood are females and four of these six have low 

 counts while two have high ones, no general statement can be made 

 on sex differentiation. Turning to the head shields, we find almost 

 as much variation as in the adults. The range of these characters 

 in the brood is: 



T w 1 8+8 _ 9-f9 



^^^'^^^ 10-hlO 10-11 



^ , 2-h2 3+3 



Oculars iTuf ~ rHH" 



rr. , 1 + 2 2 + 3 



Ten^P^rals ^^ - ^+3 



The average count would be: 



*» 



T 1- 1 8+8 ^ , 3+2 3+3 „ , 1+3 



Labials ; Oculars zr-r-^ or ; lemporals --j-^ 



iU + lU 1 + 1 1 + 1 1+0 



