142 [August 



which is the case in the common frog of Europe. Dr. Holbrook also states, in 

 presenting the distinctive characters between the two animals, that in Rana 

 halecina " there are no openings on the sides of the jaws, at the angle of the mouth, 

 out of which the vocal vesicles pass when distended with air, as in the Rana 

 esculenta." So far from this being the case, it is the only frog in the United 

 States which appears to possess the sexual characters above mentioned. Both 

 authors quote among the synonyms of halecina, the Rana utricularia of Harlan, 

 which is the male halecina with distended vocal A^esicles. The error has arisen 

 from the fiict, as stated to me by Dr. Holbrook, that the males of a species found 

 in the Southern States resembling the halecina, do not possess the vocal vesi- 

 cles. "We have latelj^ received from Florida a male specimen, found by our 

 fellow member, Mr. Ashmead, in a sulphur spring, near the St. John's River, 

 about three hundred miles from Key West, which is totally destitute of these 

 vesicles. It resembles very much the halecina, but differs from it, in having 

 a more acute snout, with a much more slender body and extremities; the 

 general color is darker, the black spots more numerous, and the markings upon 

 the thighs are different; it should be remembered however, that this description 

 is based upon a single specimen. A more important character exists in the 

 presence of a broad and very distinct and well marked row of pores along the 

 upper part of each flank, in the true halecina, and their presence also above 

 the orbits, upon the back part of the head and neck, and various parts of the 

 body ; these all appear to be wanting in the Southern species. Dumeril and 

 Bibron very consistently place the animal they describe in the second division 

 of the Ranidse, including those "without pores about the neck, upon the belly, 

 and none upon the flanks.'' We do not observe, however, in the specimen 

 before us, that the thumbs are decidedly truncate. 

 We would propose the name of Rana oxyrhynchus for the Southern species. 



Rana oxyrhynchus, nob. 



Char. Plead narrow, acute, longer than broad; body and extremities slender, 

 the posterior quite long; four or five palatine teeth on each side, very distinct, 

 between the internal nares; the patches near to each other, but a considerable 

 distance from the former ; tympanum rather small ; eustachian foramina of mode- 

 rate size; tongue narrow ; scarcely a trace of webs to the anterior toes; poste- 

 rior reaching just beyond the proximal extremity of the third phalanx of fourth 

 toe; third finger the longest; fourth toe much longer than either of the others ; 

 thumbs not remarkably swollen at their base ; subarticular tubercles not very 

 distinct; no rows of pores upon the sides, and none visible upon the head or 

 other parts of the body. 



Color. Dark olive, inclining to black above ; two black bands on each side 

 reaching from the eye to the extremity of the snout ; a narrow white band ex- 

 tending from the latter on each side beneath the t^^mpanum, in contact with it, 

 and terminating just above the shoulder ; another narrow white line, the cuticle 

 here being slightly elevated, passing from the posterior margin of the eye to the 

 upper part of the thigh, near the middle ; two dark oval spots upon the head 

 between the eyes, and upon the back ; fifteen or sixteen black oval spots, each 

 surrounded by a narrow white margin, between the lateral dorsal vittae ; ante- 

 rior extremities black spotted above ; posterior presenting upon their upper sur- 

 face several transverse bars of black margined with white, the posterior siirface 

 mottled with the same colors ; legs and tarsi spotted with black ; ground color 

 greyish above ; sides of body greyish, marbled and spotted with black and white 

 spots and markings; under surface of animal white throughout; (from a speci- 

 men in spirits.) 



Dimensions. Length of head 11 lines: greatest breadth 7 ; length of head, 

 neck and body 1 inch 10 lines ; length of thigh 1 inch ; of leg 1 inch 1 line; of 

 tarsus and foot to extremity of largest toe 1 inch 7 lines ; total length 5 inches. 



Habitat. Florida. 



It is a subject of doubt, whether the animal figured in Prof. Holbrook's work 

 be the true halecina or not; for in his description he says " a second line of yel- 



