68 NEW YORK ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



DEPARTMENT OF REPTII-ES. 



At the close of the year 1904. the Reptile House contained the 

 best assortment of reptiles which we have yet exhibited. The 

 collection of serpents is especially rich in poisonous species, and 

 includes the most celebrated ty])es of the workl. The recent 

 accessions include the Egyptian cobra, or "asp," the rare but 

 remarkable bushmaster of Trinidad and South America, and a 

 gray rattlesnake from Central America which is new to science, 

 and is elsewhere described in this volume. 



During the past year Curator Raymond L. Ditmars has rear- 

 rang-ed the reptile collection, and undertaken to provide it with 

 the descriptive labels that have long been contemplated. It is 

 believed that through a more comprehensive system of labeling, 

 the reptile collections may be made more useful to teachers and 

 students. In making these improvements, the niuuerous queries 

 of visitors have been noted as points needing explanation in de- 

 scriptive labels of particularly interesting species, or groups. To 

 this end, maps have been prepared bv the curator, showing in 

 colors the distribution of families, genera and species of the 

 poisonous serpents of the world, and certain large lizards. Ac- 

 companying these is printed matter, explaining the habits antl 

 interesting physical characteristics of the reptiles in question. 

 Two large charts, illustrating the classification of poisonous 

 serpents, have also been prepared, fraiued and placed in a promi- 

 nent position. These attract much attention from visitors ; and 

 additional charts of a similar character are now in course of 

 preparation. 



During the past year the most important foreign accessions 

 consisted of a fine pair of rhinoceros iguanas, two South Ameri- 

 can tegus, five specimens of the rough-eyed caiman, a Galapagos 

 Island tortoise which came as a gift from Major W. de S. Maud. 

 a reticulated python and two boa constrictors. 



During the summer Messrs. Adam Dove. Morris Pearsall and 

 Curator Ditmars spent several weeks in Sullivan Countv. col- 

 lecting local serpents. The total catch amounted to 2";^^ speci- 

 mens, representing 10 species, and the entire collection was ]-)re- 

 sented to the Zoological Society. In this tinr I<ii wm- 44 sprci- 

 mens of the banded rattlesnake. 



In the Reptile House there were in i()()4 no dralli losses worthv 

 of note, and the state of the rrplilc collection as ;i wlioK' is highlv 

 creditable to those responsible for il. ( )n i)eccm1)rr .^isi. ;i cimnt 

 of the living specimens on hand gave the following Mniiiuar\ : 



