400 ME. G. A. BOULENGEB ON THE VAEIETIES OE 



the large dorsal spots in a locality so far removed from the home of the platycephalce 

 reticulata;, and so completely isolated. It is also striking that the shape of the head 

 should alter simultaneously with the size, the colour, and the markings, for it must be 

 noted that the Maltese form shows less green but more brown and yellow in its livery. 

 We have therefore apparently to deal here with correlative conditions between the 

 form of the head and the other factors. As the race derived from the Maltese lizard, 

 the large, robust, black lizard of the Filfola rock, is pyramidocephalous \ we feel 

 inclined to conclude that a correlation exists between the shape of the head and the 

 robust, build." 



I have not examined a very large number of lizards from Malta, but I find that, if 

 they agree in the shape of the head with the typical form, as is also the case in 

 many Sicilian and South-Italian specimens of the var. serpa, they certainly agree with 

 the latter in the lepidosis, as may be seen from the following tabulation ; — 





1. 



o. 



3. 



4. 



5. 



6. 



7. 



a ■ ■ 



. 71 



61 



27 



11 



35 



25 



34 



8 ■ • 



. 63 



64 



25 



9 



30 



23-24 



30 



S ■ ■ 



. 59 



74 



27 



9 



31 



19 



30 



? • • 



. 57 



68 



29 



9 



31 



20-22 



33 



? . . 



. 57 



64 



30 



11 



29 



24-22 



32 



The depth of the head equals the distance between the centre of the eye and the 

 anterior border of the tympanum. The hind limb reaches the collar, or a little beyond, 

 in males, the axil in females ; the foot measures once and one-third the length of the 

 head. 



The rostral shield does not enter the nostril, and in two specimens it is in contact 

 with the frontonasal ; the series of granules between the supraciliaries and the 

 supraoculars is incomplete, the first supraciliary being in contact with the second 

 supraocular ; the parietal is in contact with the upper postocular ; occipital as large as 

 or smaller than the interparietal, in one specimen a little larger and twice as broad ; 

 supratemporal narrow or broken up; temporal scales small, but much larger than 

 dorsals ; tympanic and masseteric shields usually well developed ; usually four upper 

 labials anterior to the subocular 2 . 



Collar even-edged ; gular fold well developed. 



Dorsal scales granular-subhexagonal, faintly keeled ; 4 or 4 and 5 correspond to one 

 ventral shield, 40 to 58 to the length of the head ; scales on upper surface of tibia 

 smaller still. 



Upper caudal scales rather strongly keeled, truncate. 



1 This is true only of adult males. — G. A. B. 



" A young specimen, received from Prof. Giglioii, has five anterior upper labials on both sides and lacks the 

 masseteric disk. 



