556 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1902. 



To Prof. Samuel Garman, of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 

 at Cambridge, Massachusetts, I am greatly indebted for the loau of 

 various specimens of Porto Rican reptiles. 



To Dr. G. Pfeffer, curator in the Natural History Museum in Ham- 

 burg, I am also greatly in debt for the opportunity to examine the 

 Mona Island specimens under his care. Dr. Steinhaus, assistant at 

 the same museum, rendered valuable help during this examination. 



I wish specially to acknowledge the assistance received from the 

 military authorities then in charge of the island. Col. John L. Clem, 

 U. S. Army, the chief quartermaster, rendered material help in the 

 matter of transportation, and Lieut. Col. William A. Glassford, IT. S. 

 Army, the chief signal officer, has placed us under lasting obligations 

 by his generous and thoughtful assistance in many ways. 



Finally, I have to thank my associate, Dr. Charles W. Richmond, 

 for active help and cheerful companionship during an expedition which, 

 though offering but little in the wa} 7 of excitement and adventure, 

 nevertheless was devoid neither of arduous work nor of hardships of 

 various kinds and degrees. 



HISTORICAL REVIEW. 



The first attempt at an enumeration of the reptiles and batrachians 

 of Porto Rico is by Mr. Ledru (as he is called on the title-page, or 

 Le Dru, as his name is spelled throughout the book), who accompanied 

 Captain Baudin in 1796 to 1798 on a scientific expedition to Teneriffa, 

 Trinidad, St. Thomas. St. Croix, and Porto Rico, of which he pub- 

 lished an account in two volumes in 1810 (see bibliography). The 

 second volume contains what purports to be an account of the reptiles 

 occurring in Porto Rico under the following names: (1) Lacerta mon- 

 itor Gm., (2) Lacerta strumosa Gm., (3) Lacerta sputator Gm. , (4) 

 Lacerta iguana Gm., (5) Lacerta amewa Gm., (6) Lacerta principalis 

 Gm., (7) Lacerta rapicauda Gm., (8) Coluber columella Gm., (9) Coluber 

 melanocephalus Gm., (10) Boa murma Gm., (11) Rana ocellatalAn.- 

 Gm., (12) Band arborea Lin. var 2 Rana Americana rubra Seb. , Gm. 



This list is only less amusing than that of the birds and need not be 

 taken seriously. Evidently Ledru, who was a botanist, did not bring 

 home any reptilian specimens." He probably made notes of some 

 which he saw and of names which were given him on the island. 

 Consequently it is not worth while to attempt any identification of 

 his names, and no reference is made to them in the synon3 r mies of the 

 species in this paper. To illustrate how worthless the whole account 

 is I may quote his description of the boa, which evidently is meant to 

 be the Epicrates inornatus, a species nearly uniform grayish-brown 



a Reptiles are not mentioned in the summary of the collections brought to France 

 and deposited in the National Museum at Paris. Vol. II, p. 291. 



