REPTILES OF THE PACIFIC COAST. 189 



Description. — Head long, with flattened top and nar- 

 row, rounded snout. Rostral plate large, about as high 

 as broad, hollow below, and bounded behind by inter- 

 nasal, anterior nasal, and first labial plates. Plates on 

 top of head, a pair of internasals, a larger pair of pre- 

 frontals, supraocular and part of upper preocular of each 

 side, long and posteriorly narrow frontal, and a pair of 

 very large parietals. Anterior and posterior nasals dis- 

 tinct. Loreal rather large, rarely with a small plate 

 below it. Preoculars two, upper much larger than 

 lower. Postoculars two (or three), nearly equal. Tem- 

 porals two followed by two, rarely 1-2 or 1-1. Eight 

 (or seven) superior and ten (or nine) inferior labials, 

 seventh (or sixth) of upper and fifth of lower series 

 largest, fourth and fifth (or third and fourth) of upper 

 reaching eye, first pair of lower meeting on median line. 

 Geneials in two pair, posterior larger than anterior. 

 Scales on body smooth, in seventeen rows. Anal plate 

 divided. Gastrosteges varying in number from one 

 hundred and ninety to one hundred and ninety-seven. 

 Urosteges in two series of from one hundred and twenty- 

 two to one hundred and thirty-three. Tail very long 

 and slender. 



The color above, including the tips of the gastro- 

 steges and urosteges, is dark brown, palest on the tail. 

 A single light yellow or white line extends along each 

 side, on the third and fourth rows of scales, to, or 

 a little beyond, the base of 

 the tail. This line is often 

 bordered with black and its 

 scales are sometimes tipped 

 with orange-rufous. The 



sides of the head are spotted with yellow. All the 

 lower surfaces and the upper labials are yellow, spotted 



