42G REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1898. 



from Sail Diego, in the extreme soutli, have the bead scales strongly 

 rugose, althougli convex. 



Mr. Vau Denbiirgli points out that this species differs from the P. 

 coronatum in the presence of a spine behind the subrictal scale, a char- 

 acter which I find to be quite constant. I may add that the P. coro- 

 natum is more horny as to the peripheral parts of the skull. There are 

 four horns of the temporal series, of which the anterior is below the 

 eye. In P. blainvillei this scale is little or not larger than the one that 

 succeeds it. In P. hlai7ivillei a postorbital row of scales is very pro- 

 tuberant, and not so in P. coronatum. In P. hlamvillei there is but one 

 row of scales in the marginal fringe of the tail, while there are two in 

 P. coronatum. 



Habits. — Dr. Stejneger states that it is to P. blainvillei that the pub- 

 lished accounts about ejecting blood from the eyes should be credited, 

 and one of the specimens in the collection brought home (Cat. No. 18452) 

 is the offender who gave rise to Dr. O. P. Hay's entertaining article' on 

 this subject. It transpired afterwards that this specimen had been sent 

 me [Stejneger] alive for the very reason that it had been ejecting blood 

 repeatedly when caught. The letter from Mr. Bailey accompanying the 

 Sl)ecimen turned u^i long after Dr. Hay's experience with the animal, and 

 it is to the following effect: 



Kernville, Cal., July 11, 1S91. 

 Deah Sir: I caught a horned toad to-day that very much surprised Dr. Fisher 

 and myself by squirting blood from its eyes. It was on smooth ground and not in 

 brush or weeds. I caught it with my hand and just got my fingers on its tail as it 

 ran. On taking it in my hand a little jet of blood spurted from one eye a distance 

 of 15 inches and spattered on my shoulder. Turning it over to examine the eye, 

 another stream spurted from the other eye. This he did four or five times from both 

 eyes until my hands, clothes, and guu were sprinkled over with fine drops of bright 

 red blood. I put it in a bag and carried it to camp, where, about four hours later, I 

 showed it to Dr. Fisher, when it spurted three more streams from its eyes. One of 

 the same species that I caught July 2 evidently did the same, as I found its head 

 covered with blood when I caught it, but supposed it was injured in the weeds. It 

 seems so strange that I send the horned toad to you alive. 



Vernon Bailey. 



The specimen upon its arrival was handled a great deal, but gave 

 no evidence of its blood-squirting tendencies until the beginning of 

 August, when it resented Dr. Hay's handling it somewhat roughly in 

 the manner related. In order to give the entire history of this animal, 

 I reprint Dr. Hay's account as follows : 



About tiie 1st of August it was shedding its outer skin, and the process appeared 

 to be a difficult one, since the skin was dried and adhered closely. One day it 

 occurred to me that it miglit facilitate matters if I should give the animal a wetting; 

 so, taking it up, I carried it to a wash basin of water near by and suddenly tossed 

 the lizard into the water. Tlie first surprise was probably experienced by the rimj- 

 vosoma, but the next surprise was my own, for on one side of the basin there sud- 

 denly appeared a number of spots of red fluid, which resembled blood. ... A 

 microscope was soon procured and au examination was made, whicii immediately 

 showed that the matter ejected was reallv blood. 



iProc. U. S. Nat. Mus., XV, 1892, pp. 375-378. 



