HEEPETOLOGY OF JAPAN. 215 



rated from the frontal by the prefrontals, which are broadly in con- 

 tact; frontal shield half as wide as long; two fronto-parietals broadly 

 in contact medially; interj^arietal of same length as fronto-parietals, 

 separating the parietals completely; one pair of nuchals; supraorbi- 

 tals four, the second in contact with the entire outer edge of the 

 frontal, as large as third and fourth together; nasal elongate, with a 

 semicircular groove behind the nostril; supranasals narrow, barely 

 separated by the internasal; anterior loreal c[uadrangular, slightly 

 longer than high, in contact with second and third supralabial; 

 second loreal in contact with third supralabial only; seven suprala- 

 bials, third twice as long as second, fourth largest with parallel verti- 

 cal edges, situated under the eye; seventh small, scale-like; a single 

 unpaired postmental; ear-opening moderate, with projecting scales 

 overhanging the anterior border; scales in 28 rows around the body, 

 and 26 in a line between axilla and groin, dorsals with two faint keels; 

 a series of j^reanal scales about twice as large as the preceding series; 

 adpressed limbs overlap with their palms and soles, tip of fourth toe 

 falling considerably short of the axilla. Color above chestnut brown 

 with seven black ^ longitudinal lines extending down the back along 

 the edges of the scales; a broad black lateral band, sprinkled with a 

 few white spots, from the loreal region, through eye and over ear and 

 shoulder to the beginning of the tail, above narrowly edged with 

 white; below the lateral band scattered black spots; underside 

 greenish yellow. 



Dimcnsio7is. 



mm. 



Tip of snout to vent 100 



Tip of snout (o posterior edge of ear-opening 23 



Fore leg 31 



Hind leg 43& 



RemarlxS. — Boulenger gives the following measurements of one of 

 the specimens in British Museum : Total length, 340 mm. ; tail, 225 mm. 

 His description, apparently leased on Siamese and Hainan speci- 

 mens, agrees in most essentials with Fischer's as given above, the 

 main discrepancy being that the ear-opening is "without projecting 

 lobules," while Fischer repeatedly states the opposite (" Ohroeffnung 

 maessig, ihr Vorderrand von vorragenden Schuppen ueberragt"). 

 Mr. R,ehn kindly informs me that in the type of Hallowell's E. 

 longicaudata he found "that no projecting scales are present on 

 the anterior border of the ear-opening." The question then arises 

 whether the Formosan specimens may not represent a distinct species 

 after all. The next c[uestion, then, is to which Peters' E. hicariiiatus 

 from Hongkong belongs. The original description of Peters contains 

 no reference to the scales surrounding the ear-opening. 



oin the diagnosis "brown." 



& Fischer, Abh. Naturw. Ver. IIaml)urg, IX, no. (J, pp. 7-8. 



