260 CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES [Proc. 4th Ser. 



Remarks. — Thamnophis ordinoides hammofidii is a well dif- 

 ferentiated subspecies. The dorsal line is completely lacking in 

 all specimens we have examined — even the youngest ones — 

 which had been taken in southern California. Some specimens 

 show a nuchal spot, but none even a short line. Specimens 

 from this area also show little or no black on the belly. The 

 name hammondii often has been applied to snakes collected 

 farther north, as in the San Joaquin Valley, and the Sierra 

 Nevada. These northern snakes, however, almost invariably 

 have at least some trace of a dorsal line, and often show more 

 or less black on the belly scutes, as in vagrans. Their status is 

 discussed in this paper under the name T. ordinoides couchii. 

 T. 0. hammondii often (62%) has two preoculars on at least 

 one side of the head, while T. o. couchii shows no such ten- 

 dency. T. 0. hammondii, however, shows no tendency toward 

 an increase in the number of infralabials, while T. o. couchii 

 does. 



The specimens from San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and 

 Ventura counties are perfectly typical hammondii. The locali- 

 ties where intergradation with couchii occurs cannot yet be de- 

 fined. They are, doubtless, in southern Kern County. Indi- 

 vidual variation, in a very few specimens from the San Joaquin 

 Valley, almost bridges the space between the characters of 

 typical couchii and hammondii. 



In the San Bernardino Mountains T. o. hammondii occurs 

 with T. 0. elegans at altitudes of 5000 to 7000 feet. Here the 

 two forms seem to remain true to type, for no intermediate 

 specimens have been taken. T. o. elegans seems to be a moun- 

 tain form while T. o. hammondii occupies the lower country as 

 well as higher elevations. 



The snakes which formerly were recorded as T. hammondii 

 from San Pedro Martir Mountains, on reexamination, prove to 

 be typical T. o. vagrans. T. o. hammondii has been recorded 

 by others from San Antonio and La Guilla, Lower California. 



So far as known the ranges of T. o. hammondii and T. 

 marcianus do not meet. 



This snake feeds on tadpoles, frogs and fish. 



