42 ZOOLOGY. 



PITYOPHIS BELLONA, B . & G . 



Cliurchillia bellona, B. & G., Stansbury s report, 1852, 350. 

 Pituophis bellona, B. & G., Catal. N. A. Serpents, 1853, 66. 

 Pituophis affinis, HALLOWELL, Pr. A. N. Sc. VI, 1852, 181. 



SPEC. CH*R. Head broad behind, tapering to the snout. Snout rather pointed, but less so than in P. sayi, elevated. Crown 

 flattened between the eyes and posteriorly. Vertical plate broad, anteriorly narrow, and elongated posteriorly. Ante-orbitals 2, 

 sometimes 1 ; post-orbitals 3 or 4, Frequently a supplemental plate before the vertical. Dorsal rows of scales 29 to 35, the 7 

 outer rows smooth. Head spotted with black ; transverse frontal bar from one orbit to the other well marked ; the oblique 

 post orbital stripe rather narrow. Color of the body whitish yellow ; a dorsal series of 45-65 subquadrate blotches from head 

 to anus, transversely elongated posteriorly; 3 or 4 smaller series on each side. The lateral blotches longitudinally elongated 

 near the head; vertically elongated posteriorly when they form a series of jet black vertical bars. Ten or fifteen transverse 

 black bands on the tail. Abdomen yellow with an external series of black spots on each tide. (Kennicott.) 



No. 1528. San Antonio to Austin, Texas. Mollhausen. 



ARIZONA ELEGANS, Kennicott. 



Arizona elegans, KENNICOTT, in Mex. Bound. Eeport, IT, 1859 ; Baird Kep. Reptiles, 18, plate xiii. 



SP. CH. Body rather more slender than in Pityophis sayi and P. bellona, and head narrower; otherwise bearing a general 

 resemblance in form to these and other species of Pityophis, especially in the protruding and recurved rostral. The tail forms 

 nearly one-sixth of the total length Head depressed anteriorly, arched, and much more elevated posteriorly, where it is not 

 much wider than high, nor much wider than the neck. Vertical plate sub-pentagonal, broad in front, tapering, and very acute 

 posteriorly. Occipitals large, perfect, longer than the vertical. Supercilliaries small. Pre-frontals of greater longitudinal 

 extent than post frontals, separated for more than two-thirds of their length by the apex of the nostril, the anterior angle 

 extending down in front of the pre-nasal to below the level of the nostril. Post-nasal more than twice as large as pre-nasal. 

 Loral very narrow, as long as both nasals together, and longer than the post-frontals. One ante-orbital, sometimes a second 

 very small one below ; two post orbitals of about equal size. Two narrow and much elongated temporal shields just behind the 

 post-orbitals, entirely filling the space between the seventh upper labial and the occipital ; behind this, small scale-like temporal 

 shields. Eight upper labials, seventh twice as large as any other. Fourteen lower labials, seventh largest. Dorsal scales in 

 29 to 31 rows all perfectly smooth ; central rows not much smaller ; outer row largest, but not as high as long. 



Body whitish yellow above, with a dorsal series of transversely quadrate light olive brown blotches and two smaller lateral 

 series on each side. Abdomen uniform clear whitish. The dorsal series of blotches are indistinctly edged white blackish ; they 

 cover three or four scales longitudinally and twelve or thirteen rows transversely, and are separated by regular intervals of one 

 and a half scales of the ground color. The lateral blotches become more or less indistinct in age from a dark suffusion over 

 the ground color. Each dorsal scale occupying a dark blotch is edged with lighter. In the young, the head above is light brown, 

 with a blackish bar across the post-frontals and through the eyes to the angles of the mouth ; there is also a dark blotch below 

 the eye and some smaller ones on the crown posteriorly. In older specimens these markings become obsolete, leaving the head 

 uniform light glossy olive brown. (Kennicott.) 



1705. Between Pecos river and Eio Grande. Dr. Kennerly. 



SCOTOPHIS ALLEGHANIENSIS, B. & G. 



Coluber allegJianiensis, HOLBROOK, N. Am. Herp. I, 1836, 111 ; pi. xx. IB. 2d ed. Ill, 1842, 85; pi. xix. 



Scotophis alleyhaniensis, B. & G. Catal. Serp. 1853, 73. 



SPEC CHAR. Snout broad, rounded, much depressed. Vertical plate longer than broad. Superciliaries proportionally small. 



Anterior frontals large. Occipitals rather small. Loral, nasals and anterior upper labial less elevated than in S. obsolctus and 

 S. lindhcimeri. 25-27 dorsal rows, central rows elongated, moderately carinated. Entirely pitch black above. Abdomen slate 

 colored posteriorly ; yellow with quadrangular black blotches anteriorly. Sometimes lighter in the young, with dark dorsal 

 blotches on a light ground. (Kennicott.) 



No. 2257. Fort Smith, Arkansas. H. B. Mollhausen. 



