DESCRIPTION OF A XEW SXAKE P^ROM PANAMA. 



By Leoniiard Stejnegkr, 



Curator, Division of Rcptih.H and lUifrachiau.s, U. H. National Museum. 



Among a small lot of reptiles collected l:)y Mr. Frank E. Read at 

 Bocas del Toro there is a specimen of a little snake which appears to 

 he imdescribed. Bocas del Toro is situated on a small island at one 

 of the entrances to the bay of Chiriqni, on the Atlantic side and near 

 tlie western extremity of the Repuljlic of Panama. 



MESOPELTIS LONGIFRENIS, new species. 



Diar/nos/fi. — A small unpaired postmental in contact with anterior 

 lower labial only; median dorsal scale row not enlarged; lorcal three 

 times as long as high, entering eye; no preocular; ventrals 1G5; sub- 

 caudals 98; supralabials 8. 



Ilahitat. — Panama. 



Type-Hpecimoi. — Cat. No. 38750, U.S.N.M. ; Bocas del Toro, 

 Republic of Panama; Frank E. Read, collector. 



Description of ti/pe-sperivirn. — Body only moderately compresed 

 and slender; tail at vent suddenly diminishing both in height and 

 width; eye moderate, with vertical pupil; rostral small, triangular, 

 as high as wide, scarcely visible from above: internasals small, their 

 suture less than one-half that between the prefrontals, descending 

 low on the side of the face and entering the orbit broadly; frontal 

 longer thaii wide, longer than distance fi'om tip of snout, shorter tlian 

 the parietals l)ut longer than the suture between them, Avider than 

 supraoculars; nasal undivided, with a horizontally oval nostril; 

 loreal very long, three times as long as high, entering eye below pre- 

 frontal; no preocular; two postoculars, upper largest; temporals 

 l-(-2; supralabials 8, fourth, fifth, and sixth entering eye, sixth larg- 

 est; mental small, followed by a small postmental sej:)arating the first 

 pair of lower laluals and also the mental from the anterior chin- 

 shields; 8 lower labials, first five in contact with anterior chin-shield; 

 anterior chin-shields large, followed by one on the right side and 



Proceedings U. S. National Museum, Vol. XXXVI— No. 1 681 . 



457 



