Hurter — Herpetology of Missouri. 157 



souri. Missouri localities : St. Louis, Jefferson, St. Fran- 

 gois, Cape Girardeau, Shannon, Dunklin, Ozark, Stone, 

 Jasper, Jackson, Johnson, Marion, Crawford, Lewis, Pike, 

 Montgomery, St. Charles, Warren, and Eandolph Coun- 

 ties. Illinois localities : Madison, St. Clair, Monroe, Ran- 

 dolph, and Union Counties. 



Habits. — This snake is one of the commonest water 

 snakes in the states. It feeds largely on small fish, tad- 

 poles and frogs. The species is ovoviviparous. One in 

 captivity laid 19 eggs on June 20th. Another one bore 

 on Sept. 15th 18 young ones of an average length of 

 235 mm. 



49. Nateix sipedon transversa Hallowell. Woodhouse's 

 Water Snake. 



Tropidonotns sipedon transversus, Natrix fasciata transversa, Tropido- 

 notus transversus, Tropidonotus sipedon woodhousei, Tropidonotns 

 i4X)odhousei, Nerodia transversa, Nerodia woodhousei. 

 Description. — Dorsal rows of scales twenty-five, all carinated. Three 

 series of subquadrate black blotches, a dorsal and two lateral, the latter 

 vertically elongated. A double yellow occipital spot. A yellow spot 

 between the superciliaries and frontal plates. A black line from poste- 

 rior rim of the eyes to angle of mouth. The head is broad behind and 

 tapers forward, very much flattened above. The labials are eight 

 above and eleven below; the fifth, sixth, and seventh the largest on 

 both jaws. Ventrals 139-143. Anal divided. Subcaudals 65-78 pairs. 

 (Cope.) 



Color. — Ground color dusky, with a dorsal series of subquadrangular 

 brown blotches, alternating with the lateral series as far as the head, 

 with anterior and posterior margins nearly parallel, rarely tapering 

 downward, and reaching the ventrals. The fuscous space between the 

 lateral blotches is wider than that occupied by the blotches themselves. 

 Along the tail both the dorsal and lateral blotches are small and sub- 

 circular. Underneath the color is yellowish, and the scutulae in the 

 young margined posteriorly with black, while in the adult the middle 

 region of the ventrals is unicolor. The head is brownish-black, with a 

 double yellow spot near the commissure of the parietal plates, and two 

 spots of the same color on the commissural line between the frontal 

 and superciliaries. A black streak extends from the posterior rim of 

 the eye to the angles of the mouth. (Cope.) 



This form has normally two more rows of dorsal scales than either 

 N. fasciata or N. sipedon. The alternation of the dorsal and lateral 



