The Plated Lizards and Snake -like Species 



once be told by the presence of well-developed eye-lids and ear-open- 

 ings, while the abdomen is provided, in place of the broad, crawl- 

 ing scutes of a snake, with numerous rows of smooth and over- 

 lapping scales, which are of no use in locomotion. The scales 

 of the back are arranged in ring-like rows. 



Along each side of the body is a deep fold, this dividing 

 the dark ground colour of the upper surface with the pale hue 

 of the abdomen. The fold extends from behind the head to the 

 base of the tail and defines the proper beginning of the latter 

 appendage, which forms about two-thirds the entire length of 

 the reptile. 



The upper surface is smooth and glassy. Although the 

 general formation of the body appeals to a snake, this reptile 

 is more rigid in body than a serpent and thus incapable of as- 

 suming the many graceful, lateral undulations of the ophidian. 

 It progresses by means of a few, rather stiff, undulatory move- 

 ments from side to side. 



Colouration. Ground colour above, olive, brown or black, 

 with several dots of bright green, within each scale; on the neck 

 these spots form lines. The head is speckled with the same 

 bright colour. Beneath, the colour is uniform, greenish-white. 



On some specimens the spots on the sides fuse in a 

 fashion that produces the effect of narrow and serrated greenish 

 stripes. On occasional specimens the spots of both the sides 

 and the back thus fuse, imparting a narrowly striped pattern 

 over the entire upper surface. 



Dimensions. The measurements of an average-sized adult 

 are giver,: 



Total Length 27 inches. 



Length of Tail 1 7 \ 



Greatest Diameter 



Width of Head f " 



Length of Head i J 



The largest specimen examined measured 37 1-2 inches in 

 length, which was considerably in excess of the normal. This 

 specimen is in the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Cambridge, 

 Mass. 



Distribution. The Glass "Snake" is widely distributed 

 and occurs well into the North, although not along the Atlantic 

 coast, in the most northern part of its range. In the extreme 



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