REPTILES OF THE PACIFIC COAST. 63 



buds and flowers of plants, with the addition sometimes 

 of a few leaves. It is much prized by the Panamint 

 Indians as an article of food. A number were eaten by 

 members of our expedition, and their flesh was reported 

 to be tender and palatable."* 



Genus ii. UTA. 



Uta, Baird & GiRAKD, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci., Phila., VI, 1852, p. 69 

 (type stansburiana). Uro-saurus, Hallow., Proc. Ac. Nat. 

 Sci. Phila., VII, 1854, p. 92 (type graciosus). Phymatolepis, 

 DuMERiL, Arch. Mus. d'Hist. Nat., VIII, 1856, p. 548 (type 

 bicarinatus). 



The head and body are moderately depressed and 

 much shorter than the tail. The head-plates are large, 

 the largest (interparietal) being larger than the ear- 

 opening. The dorsal scales are small and may be either 

 uniform or heterogeneous. The labials are not imbri- 

 cate. The ear-opening is large, with a strong anterior 

 denticulation. One or more transverse gular folds and 

 long series of femoral pores are present. The supercil- 

 iaries are imbricate. 



SYNOPSIS OF SPECIES, 

 a. — Dorsal scales or grani;les nearly equal, becoming gi-adually smaller 

 laterally; an intense black band across shoulders or a blue patch 

 behind axilla, 

 b. — Dorsals juxtaposed, smooth; a narrow black bund from shoulder to 



shoulder, above U. mearnsi.— p. 64. 



b^. — Dorsals imbricate, keeled; no black band from shoulder to shoulder; 



a round blue patch behind axilla U. stansburiana. — p. 66. 



a'-. — Six or eight medial longitudinal series of dorsals largest, imbricate, 

 keeled, becoming suddenly smaller laterally; no intense black baud 

 across shoulders or blue patch behind axilla, 

 c. — Slender, tail more than twice head and body; enlarged dorsals sub- 

 equal XJ. graciosa.— p. 69. 



c'^ — Stouter, tail less than twice head and body; largest dorsals in four 

 series, two on each side of the smaller median ones. 



XJ. symmetrica. — p. 70. 



♦Merriam, N. A. Fauna, No. 7, 1893, p. 174. 



