wo. 2205. CUBAN AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES— STEJNEQER. 



289 



LORICATA. 



CROCODYLUS ACUTUS Curier. 



Fig3. 120 to 122. 



To anybody who has examined Seba's plate,' which is the sole 

 basis of Laurenti's Crocodylus americanus, the application of the 



^■^■^■ 



Figs. 120-121.— Crocodylus acuttjs, youno. § x nat. size. No. 2S760, U.S.N.M. Isle of Pines. 

 122.— Nat. size. Represents toe anterior dorsal scutellation of the same indi\idvai,. 



latter name to the present species seems absurd. That picture is 

 absolutely unidentifiable. 



This species was obtained by Palmer and Riley on the Isle of Pines. 



It may be interesting in this connection to point out that neither 

 Hornaday nor Jeffries Wyman was the first to record the occurrence 

 of the crocodile in Florida. That was done as earl}^ as 1822 by 

 Rafinesque who published the fact in the Kentuclsy Gazette.^ 



The opinion has recently been expressed that Crocodylus rJiombifer 

 Cuvier is not a good species, but only young specimens of C. acutus.^ 

 Nothing could be further from the truth. C. rhomhifer is a very 

 distinct species easily characterized by the different dorsal scuteUa- 



• Thesaurus, vol. 1, pi. 106. « Now sorios, vol. 1, No. 29, July 18, 1822, p. 3, col. 2. 



• Werner, Zool. Jahrb. Syst., vol. 28, p. 265. 



77403— Proc. N. M. vol. 53—17 19 



