19. VERTICARIA 563 



h. beldingi has either two lines (very rarely three) or one 

 with an anterior fork. Specimens with a single middorsal 

 line approach V . h. schmidt]^ but the fork is longer than in 

 that species, being from one-third to two-thirds the total 

 length of the stripe. 



Habits. — At San Jacinto this lizard lives on rocky hill- 

 sides, is very shy, and quickly retreats to holes when ap- 

 proached. 



124. Verticaria hyperythra schmidti 



Van Denburgh & Slevin 

 Schmidt's Orange-throat 



Verticaria sericea Meek, Field Columbian Museum, Zool. Ser., Vol. 



VII, No. I, 1906, p. 14 (part?). 

 Verticaria hyperythra schmidti Van Denburgh & Slevin, Proc. Cal. 



Acad. Sci., Ser. 4, Vol. XI, 1921, p. 397 (type locality, San Marcos 



Island, Gulf of California, Mexico). 



Description. — Nostrils opening in large anterior nasal 

 plates which meet on top of snout. Posterior nasal forming 

 sutures with anterior nasal, first, second and usually third 

 labials, loreal, prefrontal, and frontonasal plates. Loreal 

 in contact with third and fourth and rarely fifth or second 

 labials, first subocular, preocular, first superciliary, usually 

 first supraocular, prefrontal, and posterior nasal, plates. 

 Four or rarely three supraoculars; first in contact with su- 

 perciliary, prefrontal, frontal, second supraocular and some- 

 times loreal; second partly separated or not separated from 

 frontal; third usually partly separated from frontal and 

 frontoparietal; fourth separated from parietal by a series 

 of granules. Frontoparietals more than half as large as 

 frontal. One to three rows of small occipital plates. Sub- 

 labials usually separated from the infralabials by granules. 

 Five or six superior and six or seven inferior labials to be- 



