THE REPTILES OF OHIO 219 



in another. Ventrals in males, 149 to 157, mean 152.1; in females, 148 to 163, 

 mean 155.0. Subcaudals in males (17 specimens), 119 to 141, mean 130.6; 

 in females (19 specimens), 119 to 135, mean 124.2. 



A specimen trom Gallia County (GSM 683 — a female) m.easures 810 

 mm. (3l7'g inches) in length and is thus slightly longer than the largest 

 aestlvus previously reported from Ohio. 



Opheodrys vernalis vernalis (Harlan) 

 E.^STERN Grass Snake 



(Page 47; maps 10 and 47; plate 5. fig. 2) 



Grobman, in his review of variation in the smooth-scaled green snake 

 (1941), split this species into two races — Opheodrys v. vernalis of "the origi- 

 nal eastern forest" and a new subspecies, O. v. blanchardi. of "th; more 

 western prairies and plains area." He based his distinction between the two 

 upon the number of ventral scutes, vernalis having lower counts (less than 131 

 in males and less than 140 in females) than blatichardi. On his distribution 

 map {op. cit., 38), he indicates records for vernalis in northeastern Ohio and 

 from Columbus, and records for blanchardi from a few scattered places in th? 

 western part of the state. The localities for the two races, when plotted, were 

 found to fall upon opposite sides of a "line connecting eastward prairie exten- 

 sions after Transeau (1935) and Shantz and Zon (1924)." 



Obviously Grobman prepared his map and based his conclusions on studio 

 made upon the species Opheodrys vernalis as a v/hole. Only a few Ohio 

 specimens were available to him and most of rhem lacked detailed habitat 

 data. Approximately twice as many grass snakes are now at hand, and, 

 although they bear out his contention that both subspecies o:cur in Ohio, they 

 also make it clear that the two forms are not quite so neatly separafd geo- 

 graphically as his map indicates. The subject of intergradation is discussed 

 under the section on Opheodrys v. blanchardi (page 221). 



Grobman's publication enables one to define the range of vernalis much 

 more accurately than was possible previously. This race is now known to occur 

 from New Bnmswick, Canada, to northern New Jersey, and westward through 

 southern Ontario, New York, Pennsylvania, northeastern Ohio, Michigan, 

 and most of Wisconsin to northern Minnesota; to the south, vernalis is found 

 in the mountains of West Virginia and western Maryland; there are also 

 records from the George Washington National Forest, in Virginia, an4 from 

 Madison County, North Carolina. This snake is an "upland form" that 

 apparently may be expected only at relatively high latitudes or altitudes. 



Ohio records for Opheodrys vernalis vernalis (including seme of th? speci- 

 mens listed on page 47) are as follows: 



Ashland County: Mohican State Park, near Loudonville (SL 485; TMS 2011). 

 Carroll CouN-n': Near Amsterdam, Loudon Twp. (FWB; OUVC 823). Cuya- 

 hoga County: Brecksville Reservation (CZP 22-3); Chagrin Falls (CMNH 47); 

 Independence (CZP 3); South Park (CZP 15). Geauga County: Geauga Lake 

 (^CMNH 46). Jefferson County: Springfield Twp., near Amsterdam (FWB). 

 Lorain County: Oberlin (OC). Medina County: Medina (TMS 2464-5). Por- 



