988 



REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1898. 



Head elongated, couical from occiimt to the extremity of the snout, 

 depressed above, subconcave on the occipital region, slightly sloping 

 on the snout. Cephalic plates very much developed. Frontal subpen- 

 tagonal, broader anteriorly, though slightly tapering. Internasals 

 quite large. Three, or sometimes only two, postorbitals, variable in 

 comparative size; when there are three the lowermost is suborbital. 

 One anteorbital, large. Loreal well developed, longer than high. Upper 

 labials eight, fifth and sixth largest, the latter very large. Scales of 

 the body elliptical, rounded posteriorly in twenty-one rows. Outer 

 row somewhat larger than the rest and very slightly carinated. 



Color of head dirty brown, occipital and temporal region blackish. 

 Each of the four longitudinal bands of deep brown covers two rows of 

 scales. The intermediate yellowish brown spaces embrace each two 

 rows of scales also, except the dorsal one, which has three rows. Each 

 of the abdominal clouded bands embraces one-fourth of abdominal space, 

 inside of which is left a yellow space one-fourth of the width and 

 exteriorly another yellow space one- eighth of the width of abdominal 

 space. The tail beneath is blackish, owing to the confluence of the 

 abdominal bands, interspersed with yellowish macuLie. 



This is the western representative of the Floridian N. compressicauda^ 

 and, like it, the basal part of the tail is compressed, but not to so high 

 a degree. Its head is more acuminate than in either that species or the 

 N. valida. The coloration of the belly is a good deal like that of the 

 W. compressicauda, but the dorsal striation is totally distinct. How- 

 ever, a beginning of this character also may be seen on the anterior 

 part of the Floridian species, for the dorsal spots are split, and their 

 halves unite into two longitudinal bands. 



Cat. Nos. 



Gastrosteges. TJrosteges. 



2264, 

 1392 



132 + 1. 

 135 + 1. 



.57. 

 68. 



Length. 

 mm. 

 790. 



Tail. 

 mm. 

 178. 



Natrix clarkii Baird and Girard. 



Numerous specimens of this species were collected by Mr. Julius 

 Hurter, of St. Louis, on the islands off the cost of Florida, at Pensacola, 

 giving the species a much wider range than was originally attributed 

 to it. 



