REPTILES FROM SOMALILAND 11 



more than twice as long as head and body; upper caudal scales 

 very feebly keeled, subcaudals smooth. Adult sandy grey or 

 buff above, with brick-red or black and red dots ; tail uniform 

 or spotted with bluish grey and black ; young with five grey 

 longitudinal streaks which may be broken up by round whitish 

 spots ; lower parts uniform white. 



d" 9 



Total length 182 millim. 145 millim. 



Head 15 » 13 » 



Width of head 9 » 7 » 



From end of snout to fore limb. 21 » 18 » 



» » I. » » vent . . 52 » 47 » 



Fore limb 20 » 18 » 



Hind limb 41 » . 38 » 



Tail . : 130 .. 98 » 



This new species is very closely allied to E. hrenneri and 

 E. mucronata. It differs from both in the greater development 

 of the ventral plates of the outer row, the smaller number of 

 scales across the middle of the body (53 to 60 instead of 65 

 to 78), the feebly keeled caudal scales and the usually irre- 

 gular prseanal shields. It differs also from E. brenneri in the 

 perfectly smooth upper head-shields, the smooth brachial shields, 

 and the fewer femoral pores ; and from E. mucronata in the more 

 distinctly keeled dorsal and the more feebly keeled crural scales 

 and the constant wide separation of the subocular from the 

 edge of the mouth ; to say nothing of the coloration. The three 

 species which I have compared may be recognised by means of 

 the following key : 



Nostril between four shields ; ventrals in straight series. 



Head-shields striated; femoral 



pores 20-24 \. brenneri. \ Scales across body 65-78; ventrals 



in 6 or 8 rows, the shields of the 

 outer row, if present, very nar- 

 row; upper caudal scales strongly 



Head shields smooth; femoral ( 2. mucronata. / keeled. 



pores 15-20 \ Z. erythrosticta. Scales across body 53-60; ventrals 



in 8 rows; upper caudal scales 

 feebly keeled. 



