REPTILES 

 AND BATRACHIANS 



The chief interest of the present article lies in the announcement 

 — it is believed for the first time in print — of the occurrence of the 

 sand lizard and the smooth snake in Sussex. The evidence will be found 

 in the account of these species. The natter-jack has been recorded from 

 all the adjacent counties, and its recognition in this was therefore not 

 unexpected ; although it appears to be a very local species throughout 

 its range. The webbed newt has been much overlooked, and will 

 probably prove to be common enough in most places. 



Judging from the records in Natural History journals the herpe- 

 tological fauna of the county does not seem to have attracted much 

 attention, and this accounts for the paucity of records for the rarer 

 species. The writer would be glad if the present necessarily brief notice 

 led to a closer study of these ' scandalized ' creatures by Sussex naturalists. 

 A sufficient description has been added to the accounts of the rarer 

 species to lead to their identification. 



REPTILES 



LACERTILIA 3. Slow-worm or Blind-worm. Anguis fra- 



1. Common Lizard. Lacerta vivipara, Jacq. ■^ "' ^'""• 



Commonly distributed in suitable localities The slow-worm is locally common through- 



throughout the county. ""^ the county. 



2. Sand Lizard. Lacerta agilis, Linn. OPHIDIA 



On May 27 1892, Mr. Michael J. Nicoll Rjd or Grass Snake. Tropido.otus 



of St. Leonards caught a lizard of this ^ / ' Li n 



species in the disused brickfields near West ' 



St. Leonards station. Since that date some (.Nalrix torquata, Bell.) 



others have been caught in the same locality. Generally distributed and common. The 



This is a larger and more stoutly built grass snake feeds largely upon frogs, and is 



lizard than the last species, some reach 8 therefore most often found in damp meadows, 



inches in length. ' A typically coloured male It swims well and is also able to climb low 



during the breeding season is grass-green on bushes. 



the sides and suffused with green on the 01 ^7, ■ r 



under parts ; the sides are dotted with black, 5- Smooth Snake. Corone/Ia austrwca, Laur. 



with whitish eye-spots. The under parts are On June 12, 1898, Mr. W.J.Lewis Abbott, 



spotted with black. The adult female is F.G.S., of St. Leonards, found a snake which 



brown or grey above, with large dark brown, he assigns to this rare and local species, in the 



white-centred spots, which are arranged in churchyard of St. John's, Hollington. This 



three rows on each side. The under parts specimen was in Mr. Abbott's possession for 



are cream-coloured, with or without black some time, and he remarked the large shields 



specks' {Gadow, Jmphib. and Rept. p. 554). on the head and the round pupil. I feel 



271 



