178 THE HERPETOLOGY OF CUBA. 



below. Eight femoral pores on each side. Tail fleshy cylindrical, tapering 

 to a fine point, longer than head and body; caudal scales squarish or oblong, 

 verticellate, considerably larger below. 



Colour (in life) : — Upper surface of body reddish brown, a light hne along 

 the upper region of each side; sides of body more dusky brown. Tail bright 

 brick-red above, almost vermihon below. Belly yellowish. 



Dimensions: — Total length 92 mm. 



Tip of snout to vent 32 mm. 



Tail 60 mm. 



Gundlach collected the types of this species under stones at Cabo Cruz 

 in 1857. From that time until in 1913, when the senior author visited the same 

 spot, no specimens found their way into any collections. Since 1913, Mr. 

 Oskar TolUn has visited the same general region and discovered the species at 

 BeUg, not far from the Cape. Gundlach in his MS. note-book now in Prof, 

 de la Torre's possession describes very exactly where he collected, but made no 

 special comment except that they were found under stones. The senior author 

 who was at the Cape during a rather cool dry spring found the species rare; Tollin, 

 on the other hand, was at BeUg during the rains in August and found a consid- 

 erable number of indiAaduals under decaying leaves on the forest floor. Tollin's 

 specimens are in the collections of Prof, de la Torre of Havana, the Carnegie 

 Museum at Pittsburgh, and the junior author; the remaining great majority 

 of the specimens are in the collection of the M. C. Z., whence examples have 

 been sent to the U. S. N. M. and to the British Museum. There is no record of 

 the number Gundlach obtained, there is but one in the Museo Gundlach of the 

 Institute of Secondary Education at Havana, and others are doubtless in the 

 Berlin Museum, since they were sent to Peters. 



Thus we know nothing of the Ufe history of this curious archaic lizard. 

 Its alUes Xantusia and LepidophjTna are nocturnal and although probably 

 far from rare are nevertheless represented in but a few museums. This species 

 and Solenodon cuhanus are zoologically the most curious and interesting inhabi- 

 tants of Cuba and any notes or data regarding their Ufe histories would be very 

 valuable. 



