NATURAL SCIENCES OF PHILADELPHIA. 105 



Anterior touching both postoctilars. Labials 8—10; the upper with fourth 

 and fifth entering orbit, chiefly the fourth, which is longer than fifth. All 

 longer than high, the seventh largest, longer above than on labial border. 

 Genials long, anterior longer than posterior. Frontal elongate with nearly 

 parallel and slightly concave sides; occipitals moderate, narrowed behind. 

 Scales in seventeen rows, all of nearly equal size and rather broad. 



Total length 8 in. 4 lin. ; of tail 1 in. 6 1.; of gape 5-35 lines. The tail is 

 thus as short as in Opheomorphus. Eyes rather small. Internasals about as 

 wide as long. Gastrosteges 157 ; anals 1 | 1 ; urosteges 57. 



Upper surface of head and body dark-brown, which is bordered, except just 

 behind the head, by a series of small round brown spots on each side, which 

 become a band on the posterior fourth. Below this and ground of belly yel- 

 low, which is prolonged as a band along upper labials to rostral, leaving a 

 black labial margin. Belly with black cross-bars and halves, more sparse 

 posteriorly, confluent anteriorly on the fourth of the length ; this is here and 

 there spotted with yellow. 



From the Napo or Maranon. No. 66G5. This single specimen is probably 

 not fully grown. 



Masticophis pulchriceps Cope. sp. nov. 



This species is described from a specimen twenty-one inches long, and not 

 probably adult. The coloration of the dorsal region has considerable resem- 

 blance to that of the young of M. r a p p i i Gthr. 



Ratlier slender, the head quite distinct, rather short, somewhat flattened and 

 with broad muzzle. Tail 3-6 times in the total length. Superior labials eight, the 

 anterior short, the two posterior elongate, the third, fourth and fifth in contact 

 with the eye, the fifth and sixth elevated. Orbitals one — two ; the loreal 

 higher than long ; temporals 2 | 2 on each side, the upper anterior the small- 

 est. Internasals broader than long, rostral prominent, scarcely visible from 

 above. Frontal little concave laterally, least width little less than -5 length 

 and equal greatest width the superciliaries. Greatest length occipitals ex- 

 ceeds same of frontal ; they are truncate behind, and with straight outer mar- 

 gins. Inferior labials ten ; pregenials much shorter than postgenials. 



Scales of body smooth, in seventeen rows, second as large as the others. 

 Gastrosteges 170, anal 1 | 1, urosteges 100. 



Ground color above and below dark-blue gray, which is largely obscured in 

 the following manner A series of quadrate black spots extends from nape to 

 near end of tail, alternating with a lateral series of the same, without line of 

 demarkation between. Each spot is separated from the next by a cross-bar of 

 ground color, in which all the scales are white-edged. These bars are pro- 

 longed on the gastrosteges, and their extremities fall into a line of yellow spots 

 on a blackish band, which extend on each side to vent. The cross-bars are 

 only one scale wide. A black nuchal cresent, which extends as a band on 

 each side through orbit round end of muzzle. This sends a bar to the edge of 

 the lip at the orbit and angle of mouth, which connect on the lip. Gular 

 region black with numerous yellow spots. Top of head dark brown, with 

 numerous paler brown marks within the margin of each scale. 



One sp. (G704) from the plateau valley of Quito. 



Masticophis brunneus. Hcrpeiodryas brunneus Giinther, Catal. 11 G. Drymo- 



bim Cope, Pr. A. N. Sci. 1860. 



Two sp. (6705), one from Guayaquil and one from valley plateau of Quito. 

 Both belong to a variety with an indistinct series of small dark spots on each 

 side of the vertebral line, forming an incomplete longitudinal streak. 



Herpktodrws carinatus Boie, Linn. 



Valley of Quito; Guayaquil; Napo and Maranon, 6706, 6682, 6G61, the last 

 all of the var. fuscus. 



Spilotes piceus Cope, sp. nov. 



This species exhibits the isodont dentition and entire anal plate of Spilotes, 



1868.] 8 



