688 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1902. 



Genus EPICRATES." Wagler. 



1830. Epicrates Wagler, Nat. Syst. Amph., p. 168 (type B. cenchria). 



1844. ChUabotkrus Dumeril and Bibron, Erpet. Gen., VI, p. 562 (type Ch. inor- 



natus). 

 1849. Cliftia Gray, Cat. Sn Brit. Mus., p. 99 (type C. fusca=E. cenchria). 

 1856. Epicarsius Fischer, Abh. Naturw. Ver. Hamburg, III, p. 94, (type E. 



cupreus=E. cenchria). 

 1856. Homalochilus Fischer, Abh. Naturw. Ver. Hamburg, III, p. 100 (type 



H. striatus). 



1881. Piesigaster Seoane, Abh. Senckenberg. Naturf. Gesellsch., XII (p. 217); 



author's separate, p. 1 (type P. bocttgeri=E. inornatus). 

 1881. Chilobothrus Gundlach, Anal. Soc. Espan. Hist. Nat., X, p. 312 {emend.) 



The snakes of this genus belong to the Boid family, characterized, 

 among other things, by the vestiges of posterior limbs, which are often 

 visible on the sides of the vent as small, claw-like appendages. The 

 Boas, as a rule, have undivided subcaudal shields and are mostly 

 inhabitants of the New World. They are not poisonous, but kill their 

 prey by squeezing it to death. 



Two species occur within the territory covered by this report, one 

 in Porto Rico proper, the other in Mona Island, both related to species 

 inhabiting other islands of the Greater Antilles and the Bahamas. 



The two species may be distinguished as follows: 



a 1 Supraoculars about one-third as broad as frontal F. inornatus, p. 688 



a 2 Supraoculars about one-half as broad as frontal E. monensis, p. 692 



EPICRATES INORNATUS'- (Reinhardt). 



1843. Boa inornata Reinhardt, Danske Vidensk. Selsk. Afhandl., X, p. 253; 

 author's separate, p. 21, pi. i, figs. 21-23 ( type locality, Porto Rico; types 

 in Mus., Copenhagen; Dr. Ravn, coll.). — Chilobothrus inornatus Jan, 

 Icon. Ophid., livr. 6, 1864, pi. v, fig. B.— Cope, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1868, 

 p. 312 (Porto Rico).— Peters, Mon. Ber. Berlin Akad. Wiss., 1876, p. 

 708 (Porto Rico).— Stahl, Fauna Puerto-Rico, 1882, pp. 70, 126, 160 

 (Porto Rico).— Garman, N. Amer. Rept,, I, Ophid., 1883, p. 132 (Porto 

 Rico); Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc, XXIV, 1887, p. 279 (Bayamon, Porto 

 Rico). — ChilobotJirus i. Cundlach, Anal. Soc. Espan. Hist. Nat., X, 

 1881, p. 312 (Porto Rico). — Epicrates inornatus Stejneger, Proc. U. S. 

 Nat. Mus., XXIII, No. 1218, 1901, p. 470 (Porto Rico). 



1881. Piesigaster boettgeri Seoane, Abh. Senckenberg. Naturf. Gesellsch., XII (p. 

 218); author's separate, p. 2, pi. i (type locality, Mindanao, Philippine 

 Islands ! ! ) . 



On a previous occasion G I separated the Jamaican species which for 

 more than fifty years was considered identical with E inornatus as E. 

 subfiavus. For the distinguishing characters it must suffice to refer 

 to the paper in question, but it may be advisable to say here that 



a ' £7tiKpari?s, powerful. 



& Latin — Unadorned. 



c Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., XXIII, 1901, pp. 469-47^ 



