58 DR. A. GTJNTHER ON THE HERPETOLOGY OF CERAM. [Jau. 27, 



Head brown, with a pair of rounded, well-defined, yellowish spots ; 

 a yellow line from above the eye, along the canthus rostralis, round 

 the snout ; upper lip yellow, separated from the brown colour by a 

 black line ; anterior ventral shields with an irregular series of black 

 dots on each side ; belly yellow. 



The typical specimen is an adult male, 16 inches long. I name 

 the species after my friend Dr. O. Wucherer of Bahia, its discoverer, 

 who informs me that he has seen only three specimens of it, alike 

 in size and colour. The species, therefore, appears to be scarce. 



6. Contribution to the Herpetology of Ceram. 

 By Dr. A. Gunther. 



We are indebted to our knowledge of the reptiles of Ceram to 

 Dr. P. v. Bleeker, who, in a paper, " Over de Reptilien-Fauna van 

 Ceram"*, enumerates thirty-eight species collected at Wahaai, on 

 the northern coast of that island, and at Paulohi on the southern 

 coast. 



Having received a small collection of these animals from North 

 Ceram, I am enabled to add the following species : — Tiliqua rufes- 

 cens ; Cyelodus carinatus, n. sp. ; Coluber holochrous, n. sp. ; jFor- 

 donia unicolor. Gray ; Cerberus acutits, Gray ; and Diemennia miil- 

 leri, Schleg. However, it is probable that three of these species are 

 comprised in Bleeker's list, but under different names, viz., Cyelo- 

 dus carinatus, mihi, as C. boddaertii, D. & B. ; Fordonia unicolor, 

 Gray, as Eurostus plumbeus, D. & B. ; and Cerberus acutus. Gray, 

 as Cerb. boceformis, D. & B. Therefore, taking the number of 

 Ceramese reptiles known as forty-one, we find that thirty-five of 

 them are referable to the fauna of the Indian Archipelago, whilst 

 the remaining six belong to genera which have hitherto been consi- 

 dered as peculiar to the Australian region. Those six are Cyelo- 

 dus, Liasis, Enygrus, Acanthophis, Diemennia, and Pelodryas 

 {Hyla cyanea). 



hipsas irregvlaris appears to be one of the most common Snakes 

 in Ceram. One large specimen had swallowed the egg of a bird, 

 probably that of a middle-sized parrot ; it was but slightly cracked 

 on one end. This Snake has no oesophageal teeth. 



Fordonia unicolor feeds on freshwater crabs. 



Enygrus carinatus has twenty-seven series of scales. Schlegel has 

 counted thirty-three. 



Acanthophis cerastimis. — The specimens from Ceram differ from 

 those of the Australian continent in the coloration. They are light 

 reddish olive, with indistinct darker cross-bands in young age ; a 

 series of black dots runs along each side of the front part of the 

 belly and of the tail. The other markings of the head are the same 

 as in Australian specimens ; and as there is no other difference in 

 the form, in the shields, or scales, I consider it merely as a variety, 

 for which I propose the name of ceramensis. 



* Nat. Tydschr. Nederl. Ind. 1860. 



