Occasional Papers of the Museiiui of Zoology . y 



A Black spots on belly scattered or irregular; upper labials, 7 (only 

 rarely 8). 



a Ventrals more than 145; scale rows, 17-17. or 17-15 (occasion- 

 ally only 15); belly spots scattered or in twos, generally 

 clean-cut in appearance. D. punctatus antyi (Kennicott) 



(Western Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, northwestern Arkansas, 

 west to the Great Plains and south into Texas.) 



a^ Ventrals less than 145 ; scale rows 15 throughout ; belly spots 

 showing tendency to fuse into a single row, or irregularly 

 massed. D. punctatus strictogeiiys Cope 



(Southern Illinois through the lower part of the Mississippi 

 Valley to the Gulf.) 

 A^ Black spots on belly in a single median row or aiisent (very rarely 

 irregular) ; upper labials usually 8. 



b Sum of ventrals and caudals usually less than 191 ; belly with 

 a series of large half-circular black spots along the median 

 line, neck ring usually partially or wholly interrupted on 

 the mid-dorsal line. D. punctatus punctatus (Linne) 



(Eastern Alabama north to southern Virginia and south 

 throughout Florida.) 



b^ Sum of ventrals and caudals usually more than 191 ; belly usu- 

 ally immaculate, but sometimes with a median series of 

 small black spots, more or less imperfectly developed; 

 neck ring only rarely interrupted on the mid-dorsal line. 



D. punctatus edzvardsii (Alerrem) 

 (Wisconsin to the southern Appalachians and north into 

 Canada.) ,;^ ,] 



In the western Tennessee specimens the scale rows are only 

 15. the upper as well as the lower labials are seven, the neck- 

 ring is one-half to one scale in width, and the bellies are 

 heavily spotted. The ventrals and caudals are as follows • 



Tail divided 

 Locality Ventrals Caudals Length by length Sex 



Camden 148 37 332 0.160 Female 



Henry 143 44 276 0.178 Male 



Hctcrodon contortrix (Linne; . — The spreading adder is well 

 known and rather common in fields and abotit dwellings. It 

 is much feared as poisonous and is always killed. Of the 

 numerous examples seen near Henry only two were captured. 

 Rhoades records three from Samburg. 



