77 



snout, shorter than the parietals; loreal as deep as long; two 

 or three prae- and three or four postoculars; temporals i + i, 

 1 + 2 or 2 + 3; eight (nine) upper labials, fourth and fifth 

 (fifth and sixth) entering the eye, sixth largest: four lower labials 

 in contact with the anterior chin-shields ; latter shorter than 

 the posterior. Scales strongly keeled, in 15 rows; ventrals 

 123 — 137; anal divided; subcaudals 40 — 61. 



Uniform brown above, each scale with two small yellow 

 spots; head-shields with longitudinal black spots; sides of head 

 yellow, with a black bar below the eye, continued on the 

 throat, meeting its fellow in the middle and forming a short 

 longitudinal stripe or broken up into spots; another black 

 stripe from the eye to the angle of the mouth and continued 

 along each side of the neck, forming a broad transverse band 

 across the nape. Lower surface yellow, uniform or brown-spotted 

 or with dark spots on the outer ends of the ventrals. Length 

 of head and body 500 mm.; tail 120 mm. 



Habitat:') Waigeu; New Guinea (Sorong, Mt. Epa, Lobo 

 Bay!, Triton Bay, Andai, Mansinam, Amberbaki, Mt. Arfak, 

 Rubi, Passim, Dorei, Tana, Jobi, Sepik river, Bongu, Erima, 

 Berlinhafen, Mimika, Setekwa and Lorentz! rivers, Fly river, 

 Moroka 2300 feet, Haveri, Fife Bay, Huon Gulf); Schouten 

 Islands (Mysore); Aru Islands. — Ferguson Island; N. Australia. 



3. Tropidonotus truncatus (Peters). 



Styporhynchns truncatus^ Peters, Mon. Berl. Ac. 1863, p. 399. 

 Tropidonotus truncatus^ Boulenger, Cat. Sn. I 1893, p. 216. 



Snout prominent; eye moderate; rostral broad; internasals 

 almost quadrangular, as long as the praefrontals; frontallonger 

 than its distance from the tip of the snout, shorter than the 

 parietals; two prae- and two postoculars; temporals i + 2; 

 eight upper labials, third to fifth entering the eye; four lower 

 labials in contact with the anterior chin-shields; latter much 

 shorter than the posterior. Scales keeled, in 15 rows; ventrals 

 142 — 149; anal divided; subcaudals 43. 



Brown or black above; head reddish-brown with a light, 

 black-edged streak, powdered with brown, on the upper lip 



l) Part of the Tropidonotus^ recorded from New Guinea as T. pictiiratiis 

 possibly belong to T. mairi Gray and T. doriae Blgr., which are separated 

 from T. picturatus Schleg. by Boulenger in 1897. 



