The Hog-nosed Snakes 



naming varieties from difference of colour alone, the total absence 

 of pattern from large numbers of specimens which are black or 

 very dark gray, points to a character that should be recognised 

 for the guidance of the popular student and the beginner in 

 this branch of zoology. 



Colouration. Above, the body is very dark gray, or slaty 

 black, with no trace of pattern. 



The top of the head is black, but the upper lip plates (supe- 

 rior labials) are white, with a tinge of black at their borders or 

 sprinkled with black dots. The flat portion of the upturned 

 snout is also white, as is the chin and throat; farther down the 

 undersurface the white fades into gray. 



Dimensions. In size, this variety agrees with the typical 

 form. The largest specimen examined showed the following 

 measurements: 



Total Length 36 inches. 



Length of Tail 5$ 



Greatest Diameter i " 



Length of Head if " 



Width of Head ij 



This specimen was captured in Sullivan County, New York. 

 Distribution. The Black Hog-nosed Snake is distributed 

 over the same area as given for the typical form. 



THE SOUTHERN HOG-NOSED SNAKE 

 Heterodon simus, (Linn.) 



Considerably smaller than the preceding species attaining 

 a length of about twenty inches and stouter in form. The 

 shovel-like rostral plate (on the snout) is more prominent and 

 very sharply upturned. 



Colouration. Pale brownish-gray above; with a series of 

 large, rather irregular patches of blackish-brown on the back; 

 between these blotches the body-colour is slightly paler than on 

 the sides. Beneath these spots, on each side of the reptile, is 

 a row of smaller spots, in alternation with those above. 



With the exception of ibis smaller row of spots on the sides the 

 ground-colour presents a plain, unspotted surface, and the abdomen 

 is likewise immaculate. This is in contrast to the preceding and 

 more generally distributed species, with wbicb tbe sides of tbe reptile 



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