Dr. A. Giinther on Ceylonese Reptiles and Batrachians. 85 



the beds are evidently of the same age as those of Haldon, 

 only three species have been found. The Gasteropoda and 

 Conchifera are nearly the same at both places, but only one 

 species of coral, viz. Favia stricta. 



In addition to the above-named number, ^'. e. " ten species," 

 I have lately found the coral herewith figured, which I believe 

 to be nearly allied to MeruUna^ if, indeed, it does not belong 

 to that genus. Should this be the case, we shall then not 

 only possess a new species from Haldon Hill, but a form that 

 will assist the " Dredging -expedition " (although in a reverse 

 direction) to supply a link between the past and the present 

 forms. 



IX. — Descriptions of some Ceylonese Reptiles and Batrachians . 

 By Dr. Albert Gunther, F.R.S. 



Mr. G. H. K. Thwaites, Director of the Royal Botanic Gar- 

 dens at Peradeniya, has presented to the British Museum a 

 very fine series of Reptiles, and especially Batrachians, which 

 appear to have been collected chiefly'- in the neighbourhood of 

 the locality named. It is only recently that we have received 

 specimens from that central district, which is inhabited by 

 many peculiar forms unknown in the littoral and best-explored 

 parts of the island. The majority of the new Batrachians 

 added by me on a former occasion (Proc. Zool. Soc. 1868, 

 p. 478) to the fauna of Ceylon are again represented in this 

 collection sent by Mr. Thwaites — for instance Nannophrys, 

 which grows to a length of If inches, Ixalus femoralisj I. tem- 

 poralisj and /. niacropus^ Rolypedates reticidatus^ P. nasutus^ 

 and P. cavirostris. The three species of CeratopJiora appear 

 to be common, especially C. aspera^ which varies considerably 

 in the arrangement and development of the folds and tubercles ; 

 GeckoeUa punctata also inhabits this district. Rhinophis punc- 

 tatuSy Rana [Hoplohatrachus] ceylanica (Peters), and Ixalus 

 Schnardanus (Kelaart) *, which I had never received before, are 

 evidently scarce, as only two examples of the first and one of 

 the two latter were in the collection. But our knowledge of the 

 reptilian fauna of this island is evidently still far from being 

 complete, nearly every collection containing some new forms ; 

 and particular attention should be paid to the small burrowing 

 snakes or snake-like lizards, and to frogs. 



Mr. Thwaites's collection contained the following new 

 species : — 



* Three other, very fine, examples have been recently obtained by Mr, 

 Holdsworth. 



