no. 2078. REPTILES OF NORTHWESTERN NEVADA— RICHARDSON. 427 

 PITUOPHIS CATENIFER DESERTICOLA Stejneger. 



Locality. — The desert gopher snake or bull snake was found at two 

 points in the Lahontan Basin. The two specimens are from Pyramid 

 Lake and Carson City, Nevada. There are also two young individuals 

 in the Stanford University collection from Esmeralda County, Nevada. 

 It has been found previously in this region at Winnemucca and in 

 the Pine Forest Mountains, Humboldt County, Nevada. 



Status and variation. — These specimens do not differ in squamation 

 from individuals of PituopMs catenifer taken in California west of 

 the Sierra Nevada divide. The maximum number of dorsal scale 

 rows is 31 in two individuals and 33 in the others. The number of 

 unkeeled lateral scale rows, counted on each side at a point one tail 

 length back of the posterior edge of the parietal plate, is as follows : 

 7-8 (Carson City specimen), 8-9 (Pyramid Lake specimen), 9-10 

 (Esmeralda County specimens). 



In color, however, these specimens differ considerably from true 

 catenifer. The ground color, especially along the sides, has less of the 

 brown suffusion characteristic of catenifer, and the resulting pattern 

 is much more striking. In this respect both the young and the adults 

 agree. 



Habits. — The gopher snake from Pyramid Lake was captured on 

 top of a rat's nest {Neotoma, sp.) where it lay coiled. Its stomach 

 contained a ground squirrel, Citellus mollis, which had recently been 

 eaten. The Carson City specimen was captured under a small sage- 

 bush not far from a river bank. It contained large eggs (July 9) . 



BASCANION CONSTRICTOR VETUSTUM Baird and Girard. 



Locality. — Two male specimens of this snake from Holbrook, Doug- 

 las County, Nevada, are in the Stanford University collection. The 

 species has been recorded from the Lahontan Basin at Honey Lake, 

 California, and near Wadsworth, Nevada. 



Variation. 



Male. 



Supralabials 



{ 



7-8 

 8-8 

 2-4 

 2-2 

 1-1 

 1-1 

 172 

 193 

 763 

 207 



7-7 



Infralabials 



8-8 



Preoculars 



2-3 



Postoculars 



2-3 



Temporals 



2-2 



Ventrals 



2-2 

 174 



Subcaudals 



91 



Total length 





. . mm . . 



501 



Tail length 





mm. . 



132.5 











1 Eight of the subcaudals undivided. 

 BASCANION FLAGELLUM FRENATUM Stejneger. 



Locality. — A single specimen of the "red racer" was secured on 

 June 4, at Winnemucca Lake, Washoe County, Nevada. This is 



