Jur,y 23, 1909] 



SCIENCE 



123 



Desmognalhua fusca. This small, aquatic 

 salamander occurs in the brooks at Thomp- 

 son's Mills. In its coloration, this species 

 shows great variability. In March of the 

 season 1008, I found some small individuals 

 in a brook at the above locality. 



Among the lacertilia, the following lizards 

 were found at Thompson's Milla. 



The blue-tailed skink (Eumeces fasciatus 

 Linnajus) is exceedingly common at the above 

 locality and elsewhere in the south. In every 

 field and wood, they may be found basking 

 in the sun or running with great rapidity 

 over the ground, until they seem only a streak, 

 hence the common name streak-field. I have 

 very frequently captured this skink under the 

 bark of fallen trees, and in decayed stumps. 

 As the sun goes down, these creatures seek 

 shelter in stumps and logs, and stone-heaps, 

 etc., where they may be readily found. Dur- 

 ing the early part of the summer, at the egg- 

 laying period, these pretty lizards were fre- 

 quently to be found in hollow stumps and 

 logs. Under date of June 13, 1908, I find a 

 record in my field journal, of a male and a 

 female skink together with seven eggs, in a 

 cavity under the bark of a rotten log. The 

 eggs were lying in a group on the decayed 

 wood beneath the bark, and showed the fol- 

 lowing dimensions : 



Lcneth. Wlflth, 

 Cm. Mm 



1 1.3.5 8.5 



2 1.25 9.5 



3 1.35 9.0 



4 1.20 9.0 



5 1.30 H.r> 



6 ] .25 8.0 



7 1.30 9.0 



Th&se eggs were perfectly elliptical, with a 

 white, tough membrane for a shell, and con- 

 tained young lizards. I have frequently found 

 this lizard in the crevices and hollows of dead 

 trees a considerable distance from the ground. 

 Captured, it tries very hard to escape, and will 

 snap viciously at one's fingers, although it can 

 do no injury. The coloration of this species is 

 very brilliant, with a high luster. The older 

 males are commonly known as scorjjions, and 

 are considered extremely poisonous. 



Sceloporus undalatax (Ijjtreille). This 

 common lizard is familiar to nearly every one 

 throughout the south. At Thompson's Mills, 

 it is very abundant in all wooded upland 

 situations, and loves to bask in the hot sun, 

 stretched out lazily at full length on a fence- 

 rail or rock. Disturbed, it runs with great 

 agility, usually up the nearest tree. On the 

 tree-trunk, it moves so that it keeps the tree 

 between itself and the observer, as does a 

 gray squirrel. Its coloration should be of 

 very protective nature, as the dull-grayish 

 and brownish markings very closely assimi- 

 late with the general grayish and brown colors 

 of tree-trunks, lichen-covered rocks, etc. 

 This gentle lizard when caught, makes little 

 or no great effort to escape. I kept one for a 

 considerable time on an upstairs porch of my 

 dwelling at Thompson's Mills. Every day it 

 came out from the vines and basked content- 

 edly in the sun. Thia lizard feeds on all kinds 

 of insects, including grubs, large grasshoppers, 

 etc. I once witnessed one of these creatures 

 attempting to capture a large grasshopper 

 which had got among the grass and weeds 

 in a thicket by the roadside. The grass- 

 hopper — one of the very large species — could 

 not readily fly away on account of the grass and 

 weeds, but dashed about, with the lizard follow- 

 ing every movement, and in hot pursuit. To 

 an observer witnessing this active chase, it 

 would appear that this lizard must be able to 

 see pretty well, although Dr. Abbott con- 

 cluded that the vision of this lizard is not 

 very acute. At another time, in the vicinity 

 of Thompson's Mills, I came across one of 

 these lizards, which scurried up a tree on my 

 appearance. Something large and white was 

 protruding from its mouth, causing the lizard 

 to breathe in long, painful gasps. I killed the 

 creature and found an enormous, hairy grub 

 half swallowed head first. The grub was too 

 large for the lizard to swallow, and could not 

 be ejected, so that its mouth was forced wide 

 open, and breathing rendered extremely diffi- 

 cult. At other times I have frequently 

 watched these lizards snapping up very rap- 

 idly the tiny insects it met with on trees and 

 log.s. 



