156 CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 



of larger scales. Gastrosteges narrow and ranging in 

 number from one hundred and ninety-two to two hun- 

 dred and eleven. From twenty-nine to thirty-nine 

 urosteges; usually all single, but sometimes a few 

 divided. Anal spurs small but distinct. Tail very 

 short and nearly as blunt as head. 



All the upper and lateral surfaces are grayish, yellow- 

 ish, or greenish brown, with- 

 out dark or light markings. 

 The chin and throat are some- 

 times clouded with gray or 

 brown. The rest of the lower 

 surface is yellowish white. 



Four young, from Placer County, are dull buff both 

 above and below. 



Length to anus 193 238 356 408 482 519 



Length of taiJ 26 31 47 58 58 73 



Distribution. The Rubber Snake, or Two-headed 

 Snake as it is often called because of its blunt tail, is 

 not rare in the moister portions of California. It has 

 been taken in Siskiyou (near Mount Shasta), Lassen 

 (Eagle Lake), Placer (Red Point, Tahoe City), Mariposa 

 (Yosemite Valley), Fresno (Fresno), Tulare (Redwood 

 Canon, East Fork Kaweah River), Humboldt (Humboldt 

 Bay), Marin (Point Reyes, Mt. Tamalpais), Alameda 

 (Temescal, Oakland), San Francisco (Presidio), San 

 Mateo (Halfmoon Bay), Santa Clara (Palo Alto, Black 

 Mountain), and Santa Cruz (Big Basin, Soquel) 

 Counties, California; and in Oregon (John Day River, 

 Summer Lake, Willamette Valley), Washington (Puget 

 Sound), Nevada (Humboldt River), and Idaho (Kootenai 

 County). 



Habits. This little snake is most abundant in moist 

 places, such as are found in the redwood forests of the 



