296 Zoological Society : — 



" In the season of reproduction the tail of the male is suddenly 

 truncated before the apex and terminated in a slender filament 3 lines 

 in length. The hind feet perfectly palmated, all the toes united by 

 a membrane (t. 16. f. 8). When the breeding season is over, the 

 slender filament is absorbed, and the truncated portion of the tail 

 becomes obtusely rounded off with a slight indurated dark tip at the 

 end, and the web of the hind feet is wholly absorbed, leaving the 

 toes free (t. 16. f. 9)." — Higginbottom. 



Mr. Bell admits and figures this species in the second edition of 

 his 'British Reptiles,' 1849, p. 154. The figure is not characteristic, 

 as the crest of the male is not sufficiently high, and the coloration 

 is differently disposed from any specimen which has come under my 

 observation. 



9. Ommatotriton. 



Body smooth. Palatine teeth in a crowded series. Orbits in 

 palate large, convex. Crest of male interrupted over the loins. Legs 

 with a membrane on the inner edge. Hands with a subulate tu- 

 bercle. The hind toes free, very slightly fringed with membranes. 

 Lateral line of pores distinct, single. 



1. Ommatotriton vittatus. B.M. 



Triton vittatus, skull, Duges, I. c. t. 1 . f. 29, 30. 

 England ; North of France ; Belgium. 



Mr. Bell, in his ' British Reptiles/ gives a good figure of one of my 

 specimens of this species, which he is convinced "is to be considered 

 as a variety only of Lissotriton palmipes." The osteological cha- 

 racter, as well as the form of the dorsal crest and the disposition 

 of the colours, show that this is not the case, and that it is not 

 only a distinct species but a very distinct genus, as is further proved 

 by M. Duges' figure of the skull. 



c. Fronto-temporal arch incomplete, ligamentous behind, 

 10. Pyronicia. 



Hemisalamandra, Hemitriton, et Triton, part., Duges. 



Body slightly tubercular. Hinder toes fringed with a membrane. 

 Back smoothish. Males with a crest. The skull with only a frontal 

 process directed backwards and outwards, the temporal apophysis 

 in the other genera being replaced by a tendinous cord. 



1. Pyronicia marmorata. B.M. 



Skull, Erp. Ge*n.t. 106. f. 1. 



Hemisalamandra marmorata, Duges, Ann. Sci. Nat. xvii. t. 1. 

 f. 10, 11. 



Back marbled, vertebral line pale. Pores of the lateral line di- 

 stinct, in pairs. Skin smooth, punctulate, subtuberculous. 



Oporto. 



