CROCODILIANS, LIZARDS, AND SNAKES. 



739 



Vertical iilate subhexagonal, long, maintaining its width posteriorly 

 to the point wliere it enters between the occipitals. Occipitals long 

 anteriorly and posteriorly angular, rounded exteriorly. Postfroutals 

 polygonal, entering into the orbit. Prefrontals proportionally small and 

 sub triangular. Eostral very broad. Nostril in the middle of the nasal, 

 with a groove beneath. Eyes very large. Loreal narrow, forming with 

 the postfrontals the anterior portion of the orbit. Superciliaries large, 

 ehmgated, sides undulated. Two rounded postorbitals, lower one 

 smallest. A very long temporal shield extending backward beyond 

 the occipitals, and two or three smaller ones scarcely distinguishable 

 from the scales. Mouth deeply cleft. Upper labials, seven, sixth larger ; 

 lower labials, seven, fourth larger. Two pairs of mental shields, pos- 

 terior pair smallest, extending backward beyond the fourth inferior 

 labial. Scales subrhomboidal, smooth, constituting nineteen longitudi- 



Fig. 15:j. 



AbASTOB ERyTHROGRAMMUS DaCDIN. 



Georgetown, South Carolina. 



Cut. No. 5556, U.S.N.M. 



nal rows; outer rows considerably larger; the others nearly equal 

 amongst themselves, except the second row, which is somewhat larger. 

 Ground color above bluish black. Dorsal longitudinal red line nar- 

 row, embracing only the medial rows of scales, extending from the 

 occipitals to a little way bejond the anus. On each side of this there 

 are three rows of scales of the ground color. Then a longitudinal red 

 line, broader than the medial one, though covering only one row of 

 scales, then again three rows of the ground color. Of the remaining 

 two outer rows of scales the outermost is uniform reddish yellow, and 

 the bases of the scales of the second row have a spot of bluish black. 

 Beneath, two series of bluish black subelliptical and transverse spots, 

 one spot on the exterior third and anterior margin of each scutella. 

 The plates of the head are narrowly margined with yellow. The labials 

 are yellow, with a central black spot. 



