328 University of California Publications in Zoology [Vol.12 



Comparisons. — This species is intermediate in many of its char- 

 acters between Batrachoseps pacificus from the northern Channel 

 Islands and Batrachoseps attenuatus of the Pacific Coast district. 

 Size larger than any of the other species of Bairachoscps, not quite 

 so slender as attenuatus; head wider; tail shorter and limbs longer 

 than in attenuatus; head narrower, tail longer and limbs shorter than 

 in pacificus. Van Denburgh (1905, p. 8) states that the number of 

 costal grooves in B. pacificus is 17, rarely 16 or 18; this would make 

 the number of costal folds in that species 16, rarely 15 or 17. 



To avoid confusion, the system of enumerating the costal folds as 

 here employed should be set forth. For obvious reasons the costal 

 grooves cannot be so accurately ascertained as the folds. The limbs 

 may start in a groove or on a fold and so there may be in many cases 

 fractional folds. These are never considered, only complete folds 

 bounded on each side by grooves being taken into account. This makes 

 the number of grooves always one more than the number of folds. 



The costal folds in B. major number 18. rarely 17 or 19, the 

 number of folds in B. attenuatus ( from points in southern and middle 

 California) is 18 or 19, rarely 17 or 20, the number in B. caudatns 

 (Hassler Harbor, probably on Annette Island, southeastern Alaska) 

 from the record of Cope (1889, p. 126) is 20 (21 grooves). 



B. pacificus, with a wide head, short tail and body, longer limbs 

 and few costal folds, stands nearest the Plcthodon group of sala- 

 manders, while B. caudal us, the most specialized member of its genus, 

 with a narrow head, shorter legs, slender body and long tail, lies, both 

 structurally and geographically, at the opposite end of the scale. 

 B. attenuatus is intermediate; and B. major, representing an appar- 

 ently restricted local race, is between pacificus and attenuatus in its 

 proportional measurements (see table, p. 330). 



The coloration of the present species resembles that of pacificus 

 more than that of attenuatus. It is distinct from attenuatus by 

 reason of its pale color, especially of the ventral parts, which are 

 yellow and never gray except in narrow transverse areas between the 

 limbs. The dorsal surfaces are slightly paler than in B. pacificus. 

 In Van Denburgh 's redescription (1905, p. 8) of pacificus no mention 

 is made of darker areas between the limbs on the ventral surface such 

 as exist in major. 



Description of type. — Body and tail elongate, eylindric. annulated ; 

 tail conical at tip, stout throughout its length, longer than body ; head 

 wider than neck. Hat above, narrower than body in abdominal region ; 





