16 THE AMERICAN MIDLAND NATURALIST 



valeriae, Agkistrodon mokctsen mokasen, Crotalus horridus horridus and 

 Amyda mutica. 



5. The blue grass region, which lies almost entirely in Adams County in 

 south central Ohio, occupies a much smaller area than any of the other phy- 

 siographic areas which enter Ohio. Like the till plains, its bed rock is lime- 

 stone, but it differs from the latter in that it escaped glaciation. It is more 

 rugged and the limestone outcrops in many places, especially in the stream 

 valleys. 



A large part of the surface is under cultivation and it cannot be said that 

 collecting is good. Owing to this fact and to its small size, it is only natural 

 that but few species are recorded. Only two lizards, eight snakes and four 

 turtles are known from within its borders, but undoubtedly a resident working 

 over a period of years, would be able to find most of the species known from 

 the adjacent parts of the unglaciated plateau and till plains areas. 



Of particular interest are the small dry prairies such as the one at Lynx, 

 Adams County, and in which Sceloporus undulatus is abundant. 



Presentation of Each Species 



Presented in the following pages are detailed accounts of each of the 

 species of reptiles known to occur in Ohio. In these are embodied the observa- 

 tions made in the field, supplemented by divers notes on feeding and breeding 

 activities in captivity. Of necessity the manner of presentation of each species 

 varies, but it adheres more or less to a general plan which may be sum- 

 marized and commented upon as follows: 



First appears a detailed description of the species based entirely, unless 

 otherwise noted, upon Ohio specimens. Such description is composite and 

 was prepared from a study of a series of individuals. It is intended to apply 

 to the Ohio population of each form as a whole and consequently takes into 

 consideration such things as the range of variation in scale counts, color, pat- 

 tern, etc. It also calls attention to specimens found to exhibit unusual or 

 aberrant conditions. 



Measurements and studies of squamation, pattern, etc. follow the stand- 

 ards indicated below. All measurements were originally taken in the more 

 facile and accurate metric system, but to make the work more useful to those 

 who are not accustomed to thinking in terms of millimeters, all gross meas- 

 urements are expressed in the English system. Smaller ones demanding 

 greater accuracy, such as the length and width of eggs, are given in the metric 

 system. 



The total length of snakes and lizards is from the tip of the snout to the 

 tip of the tail. Tail lengths are from the middle of the anal plate to the tip 

 of the tail. Measurements of turtles such as "length of carapace," "length of 

 plastron," etc., are straight line dimensions obtained by using calipers. Tail 

 measurements of turtles are from the center of the anus to the tip. 



Scale counts of snakes are according to the accustomed fashion. The num- 



