THE REPTILES OF OHIO 247 



7 in five specimens qnd 8 in four; lower labials 10. Oculars 1-3, except in one 

 snake which has 2 postoculars on one side of the head. Temporals 1-2, except 

 that two snakes have 3 in the posterior row on one side of the head. Ventrals 

 in males 154 to 158, mean 156; in fem.ales 149 to 155, mean 151.8. Sub- 

 caudals in males 75 and 76, mean 75.3; in (three) females 64 to 66, mean 65. 

 Anal plate single. 



This snake is conspicuously patterned with three light lonaitudinal stripes 

 on a darker ground color. The markings and coloration are as follows: 



"Middorsal stripe bright orange yellow, occupying the median row of 

 scales and adjoining fractions oi the adjacent rows. Lateral stripe bright yel- 

 low; situated on scale rows 3 and 4. Dorsal ground color dark chocolate 

 brown. A double row of round black spots on each side of body between the 

 stripes, these approximately 1 to 1^/^ scales in length and about 2 to 2y2 scales 

 in height; the spots often run together and thus obscure the ground color. A 

 row of similar dark spots between the lateral stripe and the ventrals. 



"Top of head and occipital region black or very dark brown, except for a 

 pair of bright yellow parietal spots. Lower labials, chin, and throat uniform 

 pale yellow; sutures between lower labials edged with black in som.e .specimens. 

 Upper labials yellow, their posterior edges broadly bordered with black, espe- 

 cially toward the rear of the head. There are yellow or yellowish areas en the 

 nasals, preoculars, and lower postoculars. 



"Belly light greenish grey, each ventral with a conspicuous black spot at 

 each end; sutures between the ventrals often irregularly bordered with black. 

 There is a tendency in some specimens for spots on adjacent ventrals to run 

 together. Similar, but indistinct, markings on the under side cf the tail." 



Key Characters. — Persons using the key for identification (pp. 19-22) will 

 find that radix will check out to section 9 (p. 20). It differs from all other 

 Ohio garter snakes, however, in having a maximum of 21 scale rows (all the 

 others normally have 19); both radix and Tha772nophis s. sauritus have the 

 light lateral stripes on the 3rd and 4th scale rows, but radix has a shorter tail 

 — 26'^ f or less of the total length in comparison with 28% or more in sauritus. 

 It should also be borne in mind that radix has a relatively large and wide head 

 which is quite different in shape from the narrow head of sauritus and the 

 noticeably small head of butleri. 



Range. — Eastern Iowa, northeastern Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, and the 

 dune region of northwestern Indiana; farther east radix occurs in disjunct 

 colonies in Indiana and north-central Ohio. To the west it intergrades with 

 Thamnophis radix haydenii (see Smith, 1949). The Ohio records are: 



M.ARION County: Sec. 26. Big Island Twp. (OSM 535): Sec. 33, Grand Prairie 

 Twp. ; Greencamp Twp. (ANSP 24735); Sec. 6. Greencamp Twp. (OSM 536, 

 538); western and southwestern edges of Marion; west of Marion: Sec. 5, Marion 

 Twp. (OSM 539); Sec. 7, Marion Twp. (OSM 537); Clark's Bridge (over the Sci- 

 oto River), Montgomery Twp. WyANDOT CoUNTY: Sec. 7, Pitt Twp. (OSM 670); 

 Sec. 9, Pitt Twp. (OSM 667); 2 mi. SW of Upper Sandusky (TMS 767). 



Habitat and Habits. — Thomas has visited most of the localities in which 

 radix has been taken in Ohio, carefully noting habitat conditions and record- 



