1899.] EEPTILES OP THE MALAY PENINSULA AND SIAK. 601 



appeared giving a list of the Eep tiles of Siain', most of our knowledge 

 of which is from the collections made by M. Mouhot forty years 

 ago ; so we have to turn to that invaluable work, Mr. Boulenger's 

 ' Catalogue of the Reptiles ' in the British Museum to get an idea of 

 our present knowledge of the herpetological fauna of the country, 

 and in the seven volumes we find 85 species mentioned, to which 

 21 more can now be added, viz., Batufjur sp. inc., Chelone mydas, 

 Chelone imhricata, Thalassoclithjs caretta, Pelochelys cantons, Phyl- 

 lodactylus siametisis, Gehyra mutiluta, Draco volaus, Calotes micro- 

 lepis, Calotes emtna, Lyyosoma maculatum, Lyyosoma melanostictum, 

 Lt/gosoma howmujii, Typhlops albicejjs, Tyjjhlojjsjloweri, AcrocJiordvui 

 javanicus, Coluber radiatus, Dipsadomorphus dendrojjhilus, Hydrophi^ 

 obscurus, Enhydrishardvjickii,audDolioj[>his bivirc/atus: thus making 

 a total of 106 species. 



Only one genus, Pi-ymnomiodon, is peculiar to Siam, and V6 

 species, viz., Phyllodactylus siamensis, Acanihosaura capra, Acan- 

 thosaiira corouata, Physir/nathun merdayer, Mahuia lonyicauduta, 

 Typhlops siajiiensis, Typldops schiieideri, Typhlops alMceps, Typhlops 

 Jloiven, Prymnomiodon chalceus, Lycodon laoensis, Hypsirhina 

 jayorii, and Amhlycephalus margaritophorus. 



Boundary. — It is impossible to divide the fauna of Siam from 

 that of the Malay Peninsula, as the northern part of the Malay 

 Peninsula forms what is known as " Lower Siam." Zoologically 

 so little is known of this tract of country that we cannot sav 

 where the fauna of Siam (i. e. the neighbourhood of Bangkok and 

 the Menam Valley) stops and that of British Malaya commences, 

 or whether the two gradually merge into each other, as seems 

 probable. 



Imperfection of present knowledge. — Although Giinther in 1864 

 (Reptiles Brit. Ind. p. ix) wrote of the Malayan Peninsula and 

 Siam, " this belt of land is well explored," and Stoliczka in 1873 

 (Journal Asiatic Soc. Bengal, vol. xlii. ii. p. 112) wrote : " The 

 present list, in connection with that of Drs. Cantor, Gray, and 

 Giinther, and my own published iu 1870, may be considered as 

 fairly completing the number of reptiles and amphibians inhabiting 

 Peuang and the neighbouring AVellesley Province," I venture to 

 think that a very great deal remains to be done in this part of the 

 world ; no one has yet collected over the greater part of the area of 

 either the Malay Peninsula or Siam, and particularly the fauna 

 of the many mountain-ranges requires investigation. 



The great variety of Tortoises, 23 species, inhabiting this region 

 is remarkable, and the curious local distribution of species with 

 practically similar habits, when fully worked out, might give verv 

 interesting results. 



The natural distribution of the Malayan Geckoes it is almost 

 too late to be able to trace : certain species apparently are yearly 

 extending their area, unconsciously taking advantage of and 

 following the march of civilization, while other species, less 



' Giinther, " On the Eeptiles of Siam," P. Z. S. 1860, pp. 113-117. 



