HERPETOLOGY OF MISSOURI* 

 Julius Hurter, Sr. 



The aim of this paper is to give as complete and thor- 

 ough a presentation of the Amphibian and Reptilian 

 fauna of the State of Missouri as possible. Students of 

 Herpetology labor under many disadvantages as the de- 

 scriptions of North American Amphibia and Reptilia are 

 scattered through many works, generally found only in 

 large scientific libraries. 



Some of our adjoining states — Illinois, Nebraska, Kan- 

 sas, and, lately, Arkansas^ — have published lists of the 

 species occurring within their respective limits. This is 

 the first attempt at compiling a list for the State of Mis- 

 souri. Most of it is based upon my own observations dur- 

 ing the past twenty-seven years and those of my two 

 sons, Julius and Henry, and my grandson, Arthur Wein- 

 zettel. 



The great drawback to collecting reptiles and in acquir- 

 ing accurate information concerning their habits and 

 habitats is the fear most people have of these animals, 

 partly because of the appearance of some and the sup- 

 posed poisonous character of many. In reality there are 

 only six species in the state which are poisonous — all 

 among the snakes — while all others (96 species) are abso- 

 lutely harmless and more or less beneficial to agriculture. 



I take this opportunity to express my sincere thanks 

 to Dr. Leonhard Stejneger, Curator of Reptiles in the 

 National Museum at Washington, D. C, and to Mr. 

 Arthur Erwin Brown, Director of the Zoological Gar- 



*Presente(i in abstract before the Academj' of Science of St. Louis. 

 November 7, 1910. 

 ' Trans. Acad. Sci. St. Louis 18 : 11-27. 1909. 



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