104 REPORT OF ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF NATION A.L MUSEUM. 

 Mr. Eidgway gives the following census of the bird collection : 



Eeserve series : 



Mounted specimens 7, 000 



Skins 40,000 



Total reserve . . 47, 000 



Duplicates 8, 000 



Total 55, 000 



REPTILES AND BATRACHIANS: HENRY C. YARROW. 



The department of herpetology, under the direction of Dr. H. C. Yar- 

 row, has received much attention, and the work of separating the reserve 

 series, for exhibition and study, from the duplicates has been nearly 

 completed. The collection has been put in excellent order, in fresh al- 

 cohol, and provided throughout with tags of block-tin. The large col- 

 lections of exotic and domestic reptiles which have for many years been 

 under the custody of Prof. E. D. Cope, of Philadelphia, have been 

 reclaimed and properly distributed. There have been, during the 

 year, seventy-five accession lots received, and 1,974 entries upon the 

 catalogues. Messrs. Walker, Bell, and Wittfield have collected exten- 

 sively in Florida ; Mr. Eidgway, in Indiana ; Mr. S. W. Marnark, in 

 Texas; and Mr. Henry L. Barker, in South Carolina. The exotic rep- 

 tiles have been received from C. J. Hering; Professor Dug^s, of Mex- 

 ico; Mr. L. Guesde, of Guadaloupe; Dr. Wilford Nelson, British con- 

 sul at Panama ; Prof. Felipe Poey, of Havanna, Cuba ; and Mr. Fig- 

 yelmesy, United States consul at Demerara. A considerable percent- 

 age erf the reptiles has been received alive, and there has been oppor- 

 tunity to add largely to the collection of casts. The collection of tur- 

 tles has been overhauled, and has been arranged by Messrs. Frederick 

 W. True and Kewton P. Scudder. 



A census of the collections of reptiles gives the following result : 



Number of species North America reptiles represented* 361 



Number of specimens (lots) in reserve 3, 340 



Number of exotic specimens (lots) 1, 765 



Number of species added to reserve in 1881 67 



Number of specimens added to reserve in 1881 239 



Number of lots overhauled in 1881 3, 053 



Number of living specimens received 127 



Number of living specimens on hand 35 



The collection of casts numbers 82, 61 being of snakes, 11 of lizards, 

 3 of crocodiles, and 7 of batrachians. 



** Forty-three species lacking. 



