NEW YORK “ZOOLOGICAL S@OCIELY: 
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DEPARTMENT OF REPTILES. 
At the close of the year 1904, the Reptile House contained the 
best assortment of reptiles which we have yet exhibited. The 
collection of serpents is especially rich in poisonous species, and 
includes the most celebrated types of the world. The recent 
accessions include the Egyptian cobra, or “asp,” the rare but 
remarkable bushmaster of Trinidad and South America, and a 
gray rattlesnake from Central America which is new to science, 
and is elsewhere described in this volume. 
During the past year Curator Raymond L. Ditmars has rear- 
ranged the reptile collection, and undertaken to provide it with 
the descriptive labels that have long been contemplated. It is 
believed that through a more comprehensive system of labeling, 
the reptile collections may be made more useful to teachers and 
students. In making these improvements, the numerous queries 
of visitors have been noted as points needing explanation in de- 
scriptive labels of particularly interesting species, or groups. To 
this end, maps have been prepared by the curator, showing in 
colors the distribution of families, genera and species of the 
poisonous serpents of the world, and certain large lizards. Ac- 
companying these is printed matter, explaining the habits and 
interesting physical characteristics of the reptiles in question. 
Two large charts, illustrating the classification of poisonous 
serpents, have also been prepared, framed and placed in a promi- 
nent position. These attract much attention from visitors; and 
additional charts of a similar character are now in course of 
preparation. 
During the past year the most important foreign accessions 
consisted of a fine pair of rhinoceros iguanas, two South Amert- 
can tegus, five specimens of the rough-eyed caiman, a Galapagos 
Island tortoise which came as a gift from Major W. de S. Maud, 
a reticulated python and two boa constrictors. 
During the summer Messrs. Adam Dove, Morris Pearsall and 
Curator Ditmars spent several weeks in Sullivan County, col- 
lecting local serpents. The total catch amounted to 273 speci- 
mens, representing 10 species, and the entire collection was pre- 
sented to the Zoological Society. In this fine lot were 44 speci- 
mens of the banded rattlesnake. 
In the Reptile House there were in 1904 no death losses worthy 
of note, and the state of the reptile collection as a whole is highly 
creditable to those responsible for it. On December 31st, a count 
of the living specimens on hand gave the following summary : 
