196 Trans. Acad. Sci. of St. Louis. 



Lower labials six, four in contact with the anterior chin shields, which 

 are longer than the posterior. Head continuous with body, snout pro- 

 jecting. Eyes small. Mouth deeply cleft. Tail very slender. Dorsal 

 scales in fifteen rows, smooth. Ventrals 112-137. Anal divided. Sub- 

 caudals 4J.-51 pairs. 



Color. — Reddish or greenish brown above, some scales speckled with 

 darker. Beneath salmon color, pink in life. Top of head darker 

 brown. Labials yellowish brown. 



Size. — Total length 215 mm.; tail 51 mm. 



Habitat.— Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri. Missouri 

 localities: — St. Louis, Jefferson, Ozark, and Stone Coun- 

 ties. 



Habits. — The Tantilla leads a secretive or burrowing 

 life. In the Ozark Plateau in Jefferson County they are 

 common, and are found mostly under rocks on hillsides 

 with southwestern exposure. In St. Louis County I have 

 found only one so far. They feed on insects. 



Family Elapinae. 



This family contains all the so-called "proteroglyph" snakes, or 

 snakes with a permanently erect poison fang in the anterior portion 

 of the horizontal maxillary bone. Smaller teeth behind the fangs. 

 These may be wanting. Head furnished with plates. Loral usually 

 absent. Tail short, conical. 



Genus elaps. 



Body elongated and cylindrical. Head small, its upper surface with 

 the nine plates usually found in the JSfatricidae. No loral. Nasals two. 

 with the nostril between, or mostly in the anterior one. Anteorbital 

 one. Eyes small, pupil a vertical oval. Head little distinct from the 

 body. Scales smooth, without pits. Subcaudals in two rows. Anal 

 plate divided. (Hay.) 



79. Elaps fulvius Linnaeus. Coral Snake. Bead Snake. 

 Harlequin Snake. 



Coluber fulvius. Vipera fulvia, Elaps tenere. Elaps tristis, Le noire et 

 jaune. 



Description. — Rostral about as high as wide, not extending between 

 the internasals, which are rather small and about one-third the size 

 of the prefrontals. Frontal a little longer than wide. Parietals also 



