264 NOTES ON NOVA SCOTIAN ZOOLOGY PIERS. 



transversely longer on posterior part. Lateral ends of each 

 abdominal scutellum with a blackish, somewhat triangular mark. 

 Length, 14.25 inches ; tail, 3.70 ; greatest diameter of body, .30. 

 Fifteen rows of dorsal scales. 



TRUNK-BACK or LEATHER TURTLE (Dennochelys coriacea). 

 The occurrence of this animal in Nova Scotian waters has only 

 once been previously recorded. In my " Notes on N. S. Zoology 

 [No. 1]", was described a specimen which had been taken near 

 Prospect, N. S., about August 30th, 1889. 



In 1894 I had an opportunity of examining a second 

 one, which had been taken on September 9th of that year 

 by a man named Dauphiney, who found it entangled in his 

 mackerel net about three miles off Hubbard's Cove, St. 

 Margaret's Bay, to the westward of Halifax. It was brought 

 to land and kept alive until September 13th, when it died, and 

 was taken to Halifax for preservation. Subsequently it was 

 placed on exhibition. The following measurements were taken 

 after the reptile had been stuffed, and consequently a few of 

 them are only approximately accurate : total length, 86 inches 

 (7 ft. 2 ins.) ; length of head, 10 ins. ; greatest breadth of head, 

 8| ins. ; breadth between orbits, 4 ins. ; length of fore-paddles, 

 32 ins. (plus about 2 ins., which had been worn off); greatest 

 breadth of fore-paddles, 11 ins. ; length of hind-paddles, 14 ins. ; 

 greatest breadth of hind-paddles, 10 J ins. ; length of tail (may 

 have been extended in mounting), 12 ins. ; length of dorsal 

 shell or carapace, 58 ins. ; breadth of dorsal shell, 34 ins. ; depth 

 of notch in posterior margin of hind-paddles, about in. The 

 furrows or grooves in the shell were not so deep as those in the 

 specimen of 1889. This is probably owing to a difference in age. 



On August 16th, 1895, another of these turtles was cap- 

 tured off the same place (Hubbard's Cove) and was brought to 

 a fish-dealer in this city. I examined it on August 20th while 

 it was alive in a tank of water. As the animal was moving 

 about, it was difficult to obtain exact measurements, but the 

 following are very nearly accurate. Total length, 75 ins. (6 ft. 3 



