120 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF [April, 



COLUBRID^. 

 Tropidonotus Boi(S (Isis, 1826, I, p. 204). 



Type Coluber natrix Linn. By designation of Boie {Isis, 1827, p. 

 518). 



= Natrix Laur. (Cope, 18SS). Not Cope, 1862. 



> Nerodia B. and G. (1853). Tj^pe Coluber sipedon Linn. 



> Regina B. and G. (1853). TyY>e Coluber leberis Linn. 



> Clonophis Cope (1888). Tj-pe Regina kirtlandii Kenn. 



The use of Natrix Laur. for this genus does not appear to me obliga- 

 tory or excusable. The rule under which types of undefined genera 

 are accepted does not constrain or even imply that, in the case of an 

 originally defined genus, a species must be accepted as type having 

 characters contrary to the definition. If it did so, the only consistent 

 course would be to admit that the Code does not consider definitions at 

 all. It was pointed out by me (Science, July 6, 1907, p. 117) that of 

 the fourteen recognizable species cited by Laurenti under Natrix, now 

 distributed among eight genera, the two belonging to the present genus 

 are the only ones at diametric variance with " Truncus glabernitidus," 

 which is the sole character of diagnostic value in the definition. 



Because Fleming (Philos. of ZooL, II, p. 291, 1822) chose to select an 

 unconforming type for Natrix in T. torquata (= Coluber natrix Linn.), 

 or because the rule of "type by tautonomy" could be applied to the 

 case, it does not follow that we are compelled to use Natrix. It is still 

 open to rejection for any group as a meaningless conglomerate. It is 

 also questionable whether Fleming's citation of a species after some of 

 the genera given by him constitutes selection of a type in accordance 

 with paragraph llg of Article 30. 



As first published in a posthumous letter from Kuhl (Isis, 1822, p. 

 473) Tropidonotus is a nomen nudum. But four years later it was well 

 defined by Boie (Isis, 1826, 1, 204), who credited it to Kuhl, and named 

 under it Coluber natrix Linn, and viperinus Daudin. The following 

 year he definitely fixed natrix as the type. 



Thamnophis Fitzinger (Syst. Kept., p. 26, 1843). 



Type Tropidonotus sauritus Schl. By original designation. 



= Eutcenia B. and G. (1853). Same type. 



> Atomarchus Cope (1883). Type Atomarchus multimaculatus Cope. 



> Stypocemus Cope (1875). Tj^pe Stypocemus rufopunctatus Coi>e, by substitu- 



tion for Chilopoma Cope, preoccupied. 



Tropidoclonium Cope (Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1860, p. 76). 



Type Microps lineatiim Hallow. By original designation. 



Seminatrix Cope (Anier. Naturalist, 1895, p. 678). 



Type Seminatrix pygceus Cope. By original designation. 



