26 Records of the. Indian Museum. [Voi,. VIII, 



develop the characteristic dorsal rugosities of the adult before 

 the fore-legs break through. 



The head and body are flattened and broadl}' oval, being only 

 a little longer than broad. The tail as a whole tapers gradually 

 and is nearly twice as long as the head and body. The colour is 

 an almost uniform black or dark grey, except that the margins 

 of the lips are white and the lower surface slightl}^ paler than the 

 dorsal. At the time at which the hind limbs begin to sprout out 

 the skin is still quite smooth, but as they develop ridge-like warts 

 appear on the dorsal surface. There are numerous little sensor}'^ 

 pits arranged in lines on the head and body. 



Mouth subterminal, small ; its lips by no means strongly 

 developed. The margin of the upper lip for the most part 

 smooth but with a few conical tubercles where it joins the lower lip, 

 the margin of which is completel}^ fringed with a double row of 

 similar tubercles. The dental formula is i : 3-f-3 I 3, the first 

 interrupted row of teeth being much longer than the other two. 

 The beak consists of an upper and a lower part each of which is 

 undivided ; both are rather narrow ; the anterior is narrowly 

 crescentic in form, while the posterior is deeply excavated in the 

 middle ; neither has a concavity on the exposed surface and both 

 are minutely serrated. 



Nostril and eye small, dorsal, directed upwards, by no 

 means prominent. The internasal space is about f the interorbital 

 and I that between the nostril and the e5^e ; the nostril is equi- 

 distant from the tip of the snout and the eye. 



Sensory pits. — On the dorsal surface of the head and body 

 four longitudinal lines of minute white pits can be distinguished, 

 two on either side of the middle line. Two on each side start 

 close together on the snout and after diverging in a sinuous 

 manner so as to include between them a nostril and an eye meet 

 together behind the latter. On the ventral surface there are 

 three backwardly concave transverse lines, one just behind the 

 mouth and two, the corner of which is somewhat sinuous, 

 posterior to it. There is also a lateral line of pits along the 

 muscular portion of the tail and a row of larger, isolated ones 

 along the upper fin-membrane. 



Spiracle sinistral, large and patent, directed backwards and 

 situated somew4iat low down on the side. 



Vent in the middle line. 



Tail. — The muscular portion is slender and tapers to a fine 

 point. In the middle part of the tail the membrane equals it in 

 depth both above and below, but at the base the membrane is 

 shallow on both sides. 



Dimensions of an individual with well-developed hind limbs 

 (A) and of one (B) in which they have just begun to sprout : — 



A. B. 



Total length . . • . 58 mm. 55 mm. 



Length of head and bod}' .. 20 ,, 17 ^, 



Length of tail .. .. 38 ,, 38 ,, 



