THE REPTILES OF OHIO 205 



theory of accidental introduction; the specimen found at Cincinnati years ago 

 is identifiable as Micrurui jidrius fulvius whereas the recent one is Micrurus 

 fnlvius tejiere. 



(3) A wood turtle, added to the Ohio State Museum collection earlv in 

 1949, seemed to indicate that Clemmys insculpta had, at long last, been added 

 to the fauna of the state. It is a large male with a carapace 199 mm. in 

 length. The collecting data are "Hudson, Summit County, by Dr. Raymond 

 C. Rush, December, 1948, or January, 1949." The donor stated that another 

 had been given to him the previous fall, but it had later escaped. However, he 

 also stated that he has done field work (mostly in mollusca) in the vicinity of 

 Hudson for sixty years and has never seen the species there until the two 

 turtles were found recently. He is convinced that they were brought into the 

 area by someone. 



Students of Ohio herpetology are referred to the excellent report on the 

 frogs and toads of the state by Dr. Charles F. Walker. This was published 

 in 1946 by the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society and may be 

 secured for one dollar by writing to the Ohio State Museum, Columbus 10. 

 A companion volume on the salamanders is in preparation. 



Acknowledgements 



A large share of the credit for this report should be given to Dr. Edward S. 

 Thomas, Curator of Natural History at the Ohio State Museum. Th^s revision might 

 not have been attempted without his urging, and most assuredly, it would be far less 

 elaborate and complete had it not bsen for his constant interest and stimulating com- 

 ments. He has repeatedly taken lime cut from his own heavy schedule of activities to 

 look UD information for me or to lend advice on critical points. 



A number of young naturalists have been particularly active in Ohio during the past 

 decade, and they, collectively, have added considerably to our knowledge of the reptiles 

 inhabiting the state. They have turned up many rare jpecimens, have been responsible 

 for i.nnumerable range extensions, ?nd one of them must be cre''ited with addn-: a 

 species to the known fauna cf Ohio. It was Dr. Robert L. Rausch, formerly of 

 Marion, but now wi'h the U. S. Public Health Service, at Anchorage, A'aska, who 

 proved that Thamnophis radix is indigenous to our area. Also, among this group of 

 young men, I am especially indebted to John Thornton ^Vood, formcly of Dayton, but 

 now with the Virginia Fisheries Laboratories, '^ orktown, Virginia : he has cont'ibuted 

 much original data. William E. Duellman, of Dayton, and Robert H. Mattlin. cf the 

 Cleveland Zoological Park, have been exceptionally cooperative and generous in supply- 

 ina information based en their own field work. Charles .\. Triplehorn, of Bluffton, 

 and Joseph H. Camin, of Columbus, have been exceedingly helpful in many ways and 

 have spent much time and effort both in the field and in the laboratory on my behalf. 

 Richard M. Johnson, of Delaware, who has been particularly fortunate in finding rari- 

 ties in southern Ohio, has sent me many notrs. George S. Fichter, of Reily. and Haold 

 I. Walter, of Dayton, must be thanked for numerous favors. Paul M. Daniel, of 

 Oxford, besides doing collecting in extreme southwestern Ohio, has been quite succ^-^'fu' 

 in ferreting out museum specimens for me that might otherwise have been overlooked. 

 Credit for adding many excellent records should be given to three fcmer residents of 

 the state. These are lohn H. Hughes, with the U. S. Public Health Se-^vice in Wash- 

 irgtcn; Myron B. Mittleman, of Larchmont, New York; and Dr. H. T. Cier, rf 

 Kansas State College. Dr. Gier has very generously supplied me with notes and records 

 made while he was at Ohio University. 



The custodians of many reptile collections in Ohio must be thanked for preparing 

 Irts and shipping their specimens to me for examination. Among them are: Milton B. 

 Trautman, of the Stone Laboratory, Put-in-Bay; Leo J. Higgins, of the Toledo 



