REPTILES OF THE PACIFIC COAST. 151 



Olauconia humilis, BOULENGER, Cat. Snakes Brit. Mus., I, 1893, 

 p. 70. 



Description. Body long and slender, with short, 

 blunt tail bearing a small spine at its tip. Head small, 

 continuous with neck, slightly depressed, with promi- 

 nent, rounded snout. Rostral plate strongly recurved 

 on top of snout and continued back on lower surface of 

 head to mouth. A large nasal plate bordering lip and 

 divided behind, and sometimes in front of, nasal open- 

 ing. Ocular plate reaching margin of lip 

 between two labials. Two large plates, 

 parietal and occipital, behind ocular. No 

 supraocular plate. Nasal, ocular, parietal, 

 and occipital plates separated from corre- 

 sponding plates on opposite side of head 

 by a single series of small, rounded, im- 

 bricate scales. Scales on chin smallest. 

 Fourteen rows of very strongly imbricate 

 scales around middle of body; middle ven- 

 tral series often slightly enlarged. Preanal plate 

 single. Caudal scales similar to those on body. 



The entire upper surface, five to 

 seven longitudinal rows of scales, is 

 brown, sometimes slightly grayish at 

 the edges of the scales. The lower 

 parts are creamy white, rarely clouded with gray. 



Length to anus 91 98 133 199 235 272 291 



Length of tail 4 4 7 10 9 9 11 



Width of head 2 223444 



Width of middle of body 2 2 2 4 5 5 6 



Distribution. In California, this little snake has been 

 found only at Yuina and Vallecita, San Diego County, 

 and in Death Valley, Inyo County. It probably occu- 

 pies most of the intervening desert regions. Boulenger 

 records a specimen from San Bernardino. 



