924 



REPORT OP NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1898. 



STILOSOMA Brown. 



Slilosoma Brown, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. IMiihi., 1890, p. 199. — Cope, Proc. U. S. 

 Nat. Mns., XIV, 1892, p. 595. 



Body slender, cyliudrical; tail short; bead not distinct from body. 

 Eostral prominent, but not recnrved ; no prefrontals or loreals. One 

 nasal. Scales smooth. No scale pits. Anal entire. Teeth smooth. 



This genus is probably a degraded ally of Ophibolus. Dr. Stejneger 

 suggested an afiinity to that genus, and my examination of the penial 

 structure confirms this view. It is interesting to find the only species 

 in Florida, where occurs also the Osceola elapsoideaj the most reduced 

 form of its genus. 



STILOSOMA EXTENUATUM Brown. 



Stilosoma extenuatum Brown, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1890, p. 199. — Lcenn- 

 BERG, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1894, p. 323. — Boulenger, Cat. Snakes Brit. Mus., 

 II, 1894, p. 325. 



Eye moderately small. One nasal, with nostril in tb^ center. Pre- 

 frontals large, in contact with the second and third labiaL.and forming, 



with the latter, the anterior border 

 of the orbit. Frontal hexagonal, the 

 anterior angle obtuse. Superciliaries 

 short and broad. Parietals large, 

 bounding the postorbitals behind and 

 touching the fifth labial. Two small 

 postorbitals, the lower one resting on 

 a notch between the fourth and fifth 

 labials. Three temporals in a hori- 

 zontal series, the first lying between 

 the fifth and sixth labials and the 

 parietals. Six superior labials, third 

 and fourth in orbit, fifth largest. 

 Five lower labials, fourth very large. 

 Three pairs of chin shields. Nineteen 

 rows of dorsal scales, lozenge shaped 

 Abdominal scutelliie, 235-260. Subcaudals 



Fig. 232. 



Stilosoma extenuatum Beown. 



X 1.5. 



From type in Museum Academy of Natural 



Sciences, Philadelphia. 



and perfectly smooth, 

 small, in 40-44 pairs. 



Ground color silvery-gray, with sixty-one dorsal spots of dark brown 

 with blackish border, from head to anus, and eleven on the tail. Ante- 

 riorly the spots are from two to four scales long and from five to seven 

 wide, posteriorly becoming smaller. The interspaces are about equal 

 in length to two spots and have the three median rows of scales mot- 

 tled with pale red. Under surface of body silvery-gray, much blotched 

 with black, which runs up on the three exterior rows of scales, opposite 

 the intervals between the dorsal spots. On the sides each light scale 

 is finely punctuated with black. An elongated triangular dark patch 

 on the parietals pointing backward, and a small dark blotch just 

 below it on each side of the neck. A dark bar running back from the 



