38o The Ohio Noturalid. [Vol. Ill, No. 5, 



full}' formed, while a 12 mm. Sp. longicaudus has merelj' limb 

 buds, scarcely distinguishable lo the naked eye. Of its habitat, 

 Cope .says: "This beautiful animal is not very active in its 

 habits and is almost always found in rocky ground and in fissures 

 and caves in cliffs." (Batrachia of N. A., p. 154.) This species 

 is .scarcely ever found in water save in the breeding season, while 

 Spelerpes bilineatus abounds in rocky brooks. The larvae may 

 be found in open water, but at an carl)' age they sliow an instinct 

 for concealment, and are more readily found under leaves and 

 pebbles lying in the pool. 



Eggs. — The eggs of Spelerpes may be found most abundantly 

 in Ma)' and June. " They are deposited in a single layer upon the 

 lower side of submerged stones, each batch containing from thirty 

 to fifty eggs. The stones which are suitable for this purpose 

 must be in the form of an arch allowing the water to flow beneath. 

 They are generally in the more rapidly flowing portions of the 

 brook, but the depth of the water must be such that the eggs are 

 at all times entirely submerged, as otherwise the dash of the 

 ripples striking against them would subject them to mechanical 

 injury." (H. H. Wilder. " x\merican Naturalist " Vol. XXXIII, 

 p. 231.) The eggs are attached to the under surface of the rock 

 by means of a gelatinous envelope in w^hich they are encased; 

 the same envelope keeps the eggs separated from each other much 

 as in the case of frog's eggs. 



L.VRVA. — The larvae of Spelerpes longicaudus are hatched 

 somewhat early and continue for some time in the larval form. 

 The larva at 12 mm. has the gills well de\eloped, partially cov- 

 ered by an opercular fold. The tail is long and tapering, with 

 a broad, delicate and rounded fin. The pigment is well distrib- 

 uted over the upper surface of the tadpole, but is lacking on the 

 under surface, except for a few cells on the fin. The pigmenta- 

 tion is continuous over the anterior part of the head, but under a 

 lens shows a double row of unpigmented areas along the dorsum, 

 beginning behind the eye and running clo.se to the fin. There is 

 very little change in pigmentation at metamorphosis, as the fol- 

 lowing description of the pigmentation of the adult will show : 

 " ^; * * generally ^i^ ^- * more thickly crowded along 

 the sides, sometimes forming a di.stinct spotted baud along the 

 sides of the tail ; the.se black bands are generally aggregated into 

 a series of vertical bands. In younger specimens * * * the 

 spots above are arranged in three irregular lines, one median, and 

 two lateral larger ones. The muzzle and entire under parts are 

 immaculate." (Cope, Batrachia of N. A., p. 154.) The pig- 

 ment spots appear as brown or grayish blotches of irregular con- 

 tour. The anterior and posterior limbs may be noticed as small 

 buds, just posterior to the gills and anterior to the anus, respec- 

 tively. 



