Ig2 Trans. Acad. Sci. of St. Louis. 



of the same color as the dorsal. Anteriorly two or three of these spots 

 may coalesce, forming a narrow stripe. On the margin of the ventrals 

 is a series of small square brown spots. Belly whitish with black 

 blotches. Chin and throat white. Four or five lower labials, with black 

 marks. A black stripe from the orbit to the angle of the mouth and 

 one crossing the labials below the eye. Top of head brown. A black 

 stripe crossing the base of the prefrontals and connecting orbits. 



Hahitat. — Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Western Mis- 

 souri. 



Habits. — So far I have never found this snake in Mis- 

 souri, but include it in my list on the report of Cope in 

 the Report of the United States National Museum, Vol. 

 20, page 843, where he reports it from Independence, 

 Jackson Co., Mo. Two years ago I bagged several near 

 Brownsville, Cameron Co., Texas. At San Antonio, 

 Texas, Dr. Bock, who was with me on this trip, found one 

 on top of a small tree trunk. The snake had swallowed 

 two eggs, which could be distinctly felt in the stomach. 

 As we were ready to leave for New Braunfels, I put the 

 snake in my collecting bucket. On arriving I found that 

 the snake had disgorged the two eggs — guinea eggs. One 

 of them had only lost the spots at one end but was other- 

 wise entire. The other one looked like a piece of yellow- 

 ish well soaked leather. It no longer had the shape of an 

 e^gy but had not been broken as I blew it up to its original 

 shape. Very little of the contents were left. 



68. Elaphe emoryi Baird and Girard. Emorv's Snake. 



Coluber emoryi. Cohiber guttatus var. emoryi, Scotophis emoryi, Sco- 

 tophis calligaster. Coluber rhinomegas. 



Description. — Frontal longer than broad. Loral elongated, acute 

 angled behind. Anteorbital large. Two postorbitals resting on the 

 fifth labial. Temporals 2-3. Upper labials eight, sixth and seventh the 

 largest, fourth and fifth entering the eye. Lower labials eleven, sixth 

 the largest, four in contact with the anterior chin shields, which are 

 longer than the posterior. Head rather narrow. Eye large. Dorsal rows 

 27-29, smooth except traces on the central five or six in some individ- 

 uals. Exterior row largest, rest nearly equal. Ventrals 211-236. Anal di- 

 vided. Subcaudals 63-76 pairs. 



