TROPIDONOTUS JUNCEUS. 145 



TROPIDONOTUS JUNCEUS. Cantor. 

 (Plate XIII, figs. 1-6.) 



SPEC. CHAR. Dorsal scales disposed upon nineteen longitudinal series. 

 Greyish-olive above, with a double series of black dots along the 

 back ; a series of yellowish spots exteriorly to the former, and a 

 lateral series of black spots. Abdomen yellowish ; margin of the 

 scutellae maculated with blackish-brown. 



SYN. Tropidonotus junceus, CASTOR, in Journ. Asiat. Soc. XVI, 1847, 93. 



OBSERV. This species is allied to T. spitogaster. The specimen 

 which we describe is not a full-grown one, and exhibits a coloration 

 somewhat at variance in its details with the one described by Cantor. 

 Thus, the head above is of a shining-brown upon the snout only, and 

 the oblique gamboge band, from the angle of the mouth, extends no 

 further than the sides of the neck. The dorsal and lateral series of 

 black dots probably disappear in the adult, for the lateral series is 

 already very obsolete, especially from the middle of the body poste- 

 riorly. 



DESCR. The head is depressed, ovoid when viewed from above, 

 and quite distinct from the neck, which is slender as well as the 

 body. The eyes are very large and the nostrils also. The mouth is 

 deeply cleft, forming an open curve. The occipital plates are very 

 large. The vertex plate is also well developed, much longer than 

 broad, six-sided, subangular anteriorly, acutely triangular posteriorly, 

 with its sides parallel. The supraoculars are rather narrow and 

 elongated, broadest posteriorly, and longer than the vertex plate. 

 The postfrontals are subquadrangular, larger than the prefrontals, 

 and sending off a small process to the loral region. The prefrontals 

 are subtriangular, being exteriorly rounded. The rostral is broad, 

 superiorly rounded, inferiorly concave, and occupies exclusively the 

 rostral region proper, its edge alone being seen in an upper view of the 

 head. The prenasal is subquadrangular, much larger than the post- 

 nasal, and bearing the nostril upon its posterior edge. The postnasal 

 is vertically elongated and subcrescentic. The loral is subelliptical 



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