-;i4 COLUBRIDJi:. 



2nd Yark. Miss., Hept. p. 23 (1878) ; W. L. Sclnter, Journ. As. Soc. 



Bmg. Ix. 1891, p. 240. 

 Tropidonotus tantalus, Eichw. I. c. p. 173, 



gracilis, Eichw. I. c. 



Coluber reticulatus, Menet.r. Cat. Mais. p. 71 (1832). 

 Natrix gabiiia, Boyuq). Faun. Ital. (1832). 



tessellata, Bo7iap. I.e. (1834). 



Tropidonotus viperinus, part., Schler/. Phys. Serp. ii. p. 325, pi. xii. 



tigs. 14 & 15 (1837) ; Dum. i^- Bibr. vii. p. 560 (1854). 

 Coluber (Tropidonotus) elaphoides, Brandt, Bull. Ac. St. Petersb. iii. 



1838, p. 242. 

 Tropidonotus scutatus (non Pall.), Eichio. Faun. Casp.-Cauc. p. 108, 



pi. xxiii. 

 tessellatus, Berthold, in Wagn. Reise n. Kolchis, p. 335 (1850) ; . 



Jan, Arch. f. Nat. 1859, p. 274 ; Jeitteles, Verh. zool.-bot. Ges. 



JVien, xii. 1862, p. 283 ; Peters, Mon. Berl. Ac. 1863, p. 534 ; Jan, 



Arch. Zool. Anat. Phys. iii. 1865, p. 219 ; Noll, Zool. Gart. 1869, 



p. 299; Fatio, Vert. Suisse, iii. p. 165, pi. i. (1872); Steind. Verh. 



zool.-bot. Ges. JVien, xxiv. 1874, p. 479 ; Be Beita, Faun. Ital., 



Bett. Anf. p. 47 (1874) ; Schreib. Herp. Eur. p. 231 (1875) ; Boetty. 



Ber. SeticJz. Ges. 1879-80, p. 1 60 ; Bedriaqa, Bull. Soc. Nat. Mosc. 



1881, p. 290; Leydiy, Abh. Senck. Ges. xiii. 1883, p. 174; Boettf^. 



in Radde, Faun. Cusp.-Geb. p. 71 (1886) ; Noll, Zool. Gart. 1888, 



p. 242 ; Boetty. Zool. Jahrb. iii. 1888, p. 934 ; Camera^io, Mon. Ofid. 



Ital., Colubr. p. 23 (1891) ; Mehely, Beitr. Mon. Kronstadt, Ilerp. 



p. 35 (1892). 

 angusticeps, part., Blyth, Journ. As. Soc. Beng. xxiii. 1855, 



p. 295. 

 tessellatus, var. flavescens, Werner, Verh. zool.-bot. Ges. Wien, 



xii. 1891, p. 766. 



Eye rather small. Eostral broader tlian deep, visible from 

 above ; nasal usually semidivided : internasals usually as long 

 as broad or longer, subtriangular, truncate in front, as long or 

 nearly as long as the praefrontals ; frontal once and a half to twice 

 as long as broad, a.s long as or a little shorter than its distance from 

 the end of the snout, shorter than the parietals ; loreals as deep as 

 long or longer ; two (rarely one or three) praeociilars, with or without 

 a small subocular below ; three postoculars, often with one or two 

 suboeulars below ; temporals 1 + 2 ; eight (rarely seven) upper 

 labials ; fourth (third) or fourth and fifth entering the eye ; five 

 (rarely four) lower labials in contact with the anterior chin-shields, 

 which are shorter than the posterior. Scales strongly keeled, of 

 outer row smooth or feebly keeled, in 19 rows. Yentrals 160-197 ; 

 anal divided ; subcaudals 48-8G. Olive or olive-grey above, uniform 

 or with dark spots usually arranged quincuncially ; a more or less 

 distinct A-shaped dark band on the nape ; upper labials yellowish, 

 with dark sutures ; lower parts yellow or red, marbled or checkered 

 with black, or nearly entirely black. 



Total length 1058 millim. ; tail 200. 



Italy, Switzerland tiouth of the Alps, Middle Rhine and Moselle 

 Valleys, Eohemia, and the whole of South-eastern Europe ; South- 

 western and Central Asia. 



