HEEPETOLOGY OF JAPAN. 



379 



obtuse angle in front and an acute one behind, sutures with supra- 

 oculars longer than those with prefrontals; parietals in contact with 

 fourth supralabial, longer than their distance from tip of snout; the 

 suture between them twice as long as that between prefrontals, rather 

 narrow, especiall}^ posteriorly; nostril small, in a small nasal between 

 rostral, first supralabial and prefrontal; one preocular; one post- 

 ocular; no temporals; a large single shield bordering posterior half of 

 parietal behind fourth supralabial; four supralabials, fourth largest, 

 three times as large as second which is somewhat larger than first and 

 third, second and third entering eye; first pair of lower labials form- 

 ing a suture behind mental : two pairs of subequal chin-shields in con- 



314 



Figs. 313-316.— Calamaria pfefferi. -1 x nat. size. 313. top of head, avith chlor pattern; 314, 



SIDE OF head; 315, UNDERSIDE OF HEAD, ENLARGED; 316, COLOR PATTERN AROUND MIDDLE OF 



BODY. No. 14, Sci. Coll. Tokyo. 



tact with each other; scales smooth, in 13 rows without apical pits; 

 160 ventrals; anal undivided; 15 pairs of subcaudals; tail ending in 

 a very short spine. Color (in alcohol) above brownish gray with 9 par- 

 allel darker stripes commencing directly behind the parietals; of these 

 stripes the median one covers the entire width of the vertebral scale 

 row, while the others only occupy the lines between the scale rows, 

 viz, on each side, one between the ventrals and first scale row, and 

 one between first and second and one between second and third rows, 

 and finally one between fourth and fifth rows ; head slightly paler than 

 the body with a few rather irregular and ill-defined darker markings; 

 an ill-defined dark band from nostril through eye and over upper 

 portion of fourth supralabial; labials below this band and entire 



