REVISION OF THE KING SNAKES. 19 



j 2. Dorsal stripe poorly defined, of light brown or cinnamon on a 

 dark brown ground color; bellj'" uniform hxo'wn.. nilida, p. 103. 

 (Southern Lower California.) 

 i 2. Pattern of rings. 



k ■. White ^ scales white to their bases, forming rings of uniform 



white hoylii, p. 75. 



(California, Nevada, southwestern Utah, northern and 

 western Arizona, and northern Lower California.) 

 k 2. White ^ scales mostlj' brown at their bases. 



I '. White bars on prefrontals occupying less than half the 

 area of these scutes; frontal plate uniform black, or 

 with the white restricted to a narrow transverse bar at 

 its anterior end; no white on parietals; infralabials 



usually 9 yumensis, p. 66. 



(Southern Arizona, extreme southeastern California, 

 northeastern Lower California, and northwestern 

 Sonora.) 

 I 2. White bars on prefrontals occupying more than half the 

 area of these plates; frontal plate with prominent white 

 markings, or at least with a central spot of white; each 

 parietal with one or more ■white spots; infralabials 



usually 10 conjuncla, p. 89. 



(Southern Lower California.) 

 h 2. Pattern with red, or with dorsal blotches of brown, gray, or red, with black 

 borders. 



m '. Pattern of black-edged dorsal blotches of brownish or 

 dark red, only narrowly in contact with the fifth row 

 of scales or extending no lov/er than the sixth or 



seventh rows calligaster group. 



n '. Blotches less than 40 leonis, p. 138. 



(Nuevo Leon, Mexico.) 

 n 2. Blotches 45 to 80. 



*. Scale rows 25 to 27 on middle of body; dorsal 

 blotches with concave anterior and posterior 

 margins; infralabials 9 or 10, rarely 8. 



calligaster, p. 115. 

 (Western Texas to ^Mississippi, north to Indi- 

 ana) and northwest to Minnesota, thence south 

 to Texas.) 

 o 2. Scale rows 23 or 21 on middle of body; dorsal 

 blotches with straight or convex anterior and 

 posterior margins; infralabials 8, less often 



9 rhombomaculata, p. 128. 



(Mobile, Alabama, to Knoxville, Tennessee, 

 north to Maryland, south to Central Florida.) 

 m 2. Pattern in rings; or, if in blotches or saddles of brown, 

 gray, or red, these broadly in contact with the fifth 

 or a lower row of scales. 



p '. Whitish cross bands on bodj' and tail less than 

 40; or, if more than 40, the snout not uni- 

 formly whitish. 



' Specimens may be found which can be accurately identifled only by locality; in particular it should 

 be noted that young examples of yumensis and conjuncla may resemble boylii. See table, p. 77, com- 

 paring these three forms. 



