16 BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES. 



I lealera in terrapin regard Muhu-hiiniijis ccntruln with little favor, and it commands a much lower 

 price in the markets than the northern form. The reasons for this unpopularity are variously stated 

 to he toughness and coarseness of the flesh, large size of the bones, lack of flavor, uninviting appear- 

 ance, and it would seem that all the disagreeable qualities are found combined in the terrapin from 

 South Carolina and Georgia; those from North Carolina are more esteemed, probably owing to the 

 fact that among them are to be found numerous individuals which can be made to pass muster as 

 genuine "( 'hesapeakes". 



By Agassi z (1857, p. 43S), and by Boulenger (1889, p. 89), Emys macrocephalus of Gray (1844, p. 

 26), is regarded as a synonym of .17. centrata. Agassiz states that the species was based on a large- 

 headed specimen of the diamond-back terrapin. An examination of Gray's description shows A'. 

 iiKicrtityplhittis to be indeterminable, as it does not apply to any one turtle more than to another, ami 

 even the locality is doubtful. 



Malaclemmys centrata concentrica (Shaw). The Chesapeake Terrapin. Tls. I, IV, V, and X 



(tig. 2). 



1792. Testudo terrapin Schoepff, Hist. Testud., p. 04, pi. xv (name preoccupied). 

 1802, Testudo concentrica Shaw, General Zool., Ill, p. 43. 



1825. Knnis centrata Say, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., IV, p. 205 (part), &c. Numerous other authors as cited under 

 .1/. cent ratt i. 



Type locality. — Both Schoepff and Shaw obtained their specimens from the markets of Philadelphia, 

 and we may therefore fix the type locality somewhere in that region, probably Delaware Bay, as in 

 that early day practically all the sea food handled in Philadelphia came from those waters. 



Distribution. — The littoral region of the eastern United States from Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, 

 to Virginia or North Carolina; Long Island Sound, Delaware and Chesapeake bays, &c. 



( 'haracters. — The carapace has in general the form of that of M. centrata, but is broader posteriorly 

 and the marginal plates behind the bridge are seldom revolute; the plastron, also, is less convergent 

 posteriorly; the plates of the carapace bear conspicuous concentric ridges, but those of the plastron are 

 smoother, nearly always, however, except in some old individuals, showing at least traces of the lines 

 of growth; the head is small, narrow, and neatly formed, the top of it flat, giving the nose a sharper 

 appearance than is to be seen in the other jorm of this species. 



The color varies from uniform black to light brown, the latter always marked with darker con- 

 centric lines on each plate of the carapace and more or less blotched with darker on the plastron; the 

 skin of the head, legs, and tail varies from nearly pure black to a very light green-gray, the latter more 

 or less marked withjspecks and short, crooked lines of black; the lips and top of the head are usually 

 dusky, but individuals may be found with either or both white. 



The male- resemble the females in the shape of the carapace, except that they are a little sharper 

 posteriorly and the marginal plates are frequently a little revolute; the nose is much sharper than in 

 the females. 



It seems \ cry probable that somcof the types of coloration indicate local variation, but the species 

 has been so thoroughly mixed by the shipping of large consignments from one place to another that it 

 isdoubtful whether anything of this kind could be proved. All the specimens from Connecticut and 

 other northern localities, so far as I have seen, are very light in color, with conspicuous concentric 

 markings, but very smooth shells; Potomac River specimens are similar, but have rougher plates; 

 those from the ocean and inclosed bays of the Atlantic roast of the Maryland-Virginia peninsula are, 

 in more than 75 per cent of the specimens, very dark and without markings of any kind. The terrapin 

 from Delaware Bay are more like those of more northern localities, but usually present very little 

 contrast in the color markings on the plates of the carapace. 



'Many varieties are recognized by the dealers in terrapin — "Chesapeakes," "Delaware Bays," 

 '■ Long Island terrapin," " Connecticuts," &c. — but in most cases the determinations 'are nothing more 

 than guesswork. 



Malaclemmys macrospilota, sp. nov. The Florida Terrapin. Pis. VI, VII, and XI (fig. 1). 



Type. — U. S. National Museum No. 33917, an adult female from Charlotte Harbor, Florida, secured 

 at the Washington market, December, 1902, by W. P. Hay. 



Distribution. — Salt marshes of the western coast of Florida, the limits of the range as far as known 

 being from Charlotte Harbor northward to Sand Key. 



