296 Illinois State Laboratory of Natural History. 



on the flanks a series of small black spots with pale centers : 

 some of the latter spots alternate with the brown dorsal 

 blotches, while others are opposite them and may fuse with 

 their black margins. Sometimes there are two series of spots 

 on the flanks. Iris red. Tongue red, black-tipped. Yellowish 

 beneath, checkered with black, paler anteriorly, often mostly 

 black posteriorly from fusion of the black marks, spots some- 

 times confined to the sides. Head brown above posteriorly, 

 sometimes with a cordiform or triangular pale spot behind the 

 parietals ; generally with a more or less distinct dark bar on 

 prefrontals, reaching from one orbit to the other. A black 

 dash extends from the eye to the corner of the mouth. Labiala 

 edged with black. The anterior dorsal brown spot generally 

 includes the pale spot behind the parietals and extends upon 

 the head ; it frequently also fuses with the spot following. 



Total length of example from Galesburg, 36 ; tail, 5.12. 



Throughout the State. Moderately common. Freeport, 

 Galesburg, Peoria (Brendel), Pekin, Hudson, Normal, Urbana, 

 Mt. Carmel (Nat. Mus.), Cobden, Anna. 



Variety triangulus. 



With large chestnut-brown, black-margined dorsal spots 

 separated by a gray or yellowish brown ground color. Check- 

 ered with black beneath. Everywhere common. 



Variety doliatus. 



With large red black-margined dorsal blotches and white 

 or gray interspaces. The approximation of the black margins 

 of adjacent blotches gives the effect of pairs of transverse 

 black lines embracing pale bands. Beneath yellowish, with 

 most of the black at the sides, or the surface mostly black. 



Southern Illinois. 



Farmers frequently find this species in their cellars, where 

 it is supposed to be attracted by the milk. Its food, according 

 to I)e Kay, consists of frogs and toads. 



Ophibolus rhombomaculatus, Flolbr. 



f'lirouc/ln rlt(iiiiliii))i(iciil<ilii, Ilolbr., N. A. Herp., 1842, III., p. 

 103, pi. 23. 



