GERRHOSAURUS SUBTESSELLATUS. 



parietal or inter-parietal plates (Vide Plate XLII. Fig. 5.) Temporal plates 

 six, the hindermost one the largest. Meatus auditorius externus edged ante- 

 riorly by a narrow projecting plate. Scales of body slightly imbricate, and 

 arranged in transverse rows ; they are quadrangular in form, and in propor- 

 tion to the size of the species are larger than in any other species of the genus 

 yet described ; they are all quite smooth, and destitute even of the rudiments 

 of a keel. Lateral duplicature well developed. Plates of belly quadran- 

 gular, and disposed in transverse rows, eight scales in each, their greatest 

 width transversely. Femoral pores eight. Preanal plates three in a row, the 

 middle one diamond-shaped. Length from nose to base of tail, 1 inch 

 1 1 lines ; length of tail, 4 inches. 



So far as I know, only a very few specimens of this species have yet been obtained, and the 

 only two I myself procured were caught among short grass in the vicinity of a low rocky 

 knowl, in Great Namaqualand. 



The uniformly smooth surface of the scales of this species distinguish it at once from the 

 others of the genus. The small depth of the body is also another diagnostic character, and a 

 third is the great size of the scales, when compared with the size of the Lizard. 



