

CHECK LIST OF NORTH AMERICAN REPTILIA AND 
BATRACHIA, 
WITH LISTS OF SPECIMENS IN RESERVE AND GENERAL SERIES. 
By Hi Ce. YArRow, M. D. (Univ. Penn); 
Honorary Curator, Department of Reptiles. 
Some seven years have elapsed since the publication of the valuable 
paper by Prof. E. D. Cope, entitled “Check List of North American 
Batrachia and Reptilia,” issued as Bulletin No. 1 of the United States 
National Museum, and since that time a number of additions have been 
made to the reptilian fauna of our country, and some changes of nomen- 
clature have been suggested. To bring the subject up to date, the 
present paper has been prepared. 
In connection with the preparation of the paper, the entire collection 
of North American reptiles has been thoroughly examined, and the 
specimens have been divided into two series, called reserve and general 
series. The first of these consists of a carefully selected set of speci- 
mens which are intended to serve not only as a means of identifica- 
tion of specimens received from time to time at the Museum. but to 
afford students of this branch of Natural History an opportunity of 
making needful comparisons and of studying the generic and specific 
variations shown by so large a suite of examples from all parts of North 
America. In selecting specimens for the series, careful attention was 
paid to the following points which seemed essential: 
1st. To reserve all type specimens that had been described by the 
earlier writers on American herpetology. 
2d. To reserve those specimens identified by Prof. E. D. Cope at the 
time that he studied the entire reptilian collection of the Museum. 
3d. To select specimens of the same species from different geograph- 
ical areas. 
4th. To select such specimens which showed either abnormalities from 
type descriptions or variation of color or scale formula. Following this 
plan a collection has been formed which embraces 469 species, and over 
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