1900.] FAUNA OF THE WHITE NILE. 967 



IV. REPTILES. 



Family Pelomedusid^e. 

 Steenoth^rus adansoni (Schweigg.). 



This Water-Tortoise was found on the White Nile from Abu 

 Zeit southwards, and on the Zeraf and Ghazal rivers. 



The British Museum contains a specimen collected by Consul 

 Petherick on the Upper Nile. 



Family Tbionychid^e. 



CrCLANOEBIS senegalensis (D. & B.). 



Remains of this Turtle were found lying on the banks of the 

 White Nile as far north as Renk, and on the Bahr-el-Zeraf. 



Family CrocodiliDjE. 

 Crocodilus niloticus Laur. 



Crocodiles were noted on 30 days out of the 47 we were south 

 of Khartoum. We first saw them about 20 miles to the north of 

 El Dueni, but they did not become numerous till south of Abu 

 Zeit ford. From Jebel Ain onward to about Fashoda, Crocodiles 

 were seldom out of sight, often in large numbers : for instance on 

 17th March I counted 21 individuals lying at one spot on the tail 

 of an island, and on 18th April 22 basking on one sandbank. 

 On the Bahr-el-Zeraf small Crocodiles were numerous, I caught 

 one alive. We also saw some Crocodiles on the Lake No end of 

 the White Nile, on the Bahr-el-Jebel, Bahr-el-Ghazal, Bahr-el- 

 Homar, and Lake Ambadi ; they were probably as numerous on 

 these rivers as on the White Nile, but the thick masses of reeds 

 prevented one seeing them, and on the Bahr-el-Jebel the Crocodiles 

 were, curiously, very shy and we could not get within shooting 

 distance of them. 



Most of the Crocodiles seen were under 12 feet in length, but 

 some must have approached 15 feet; the lai'gest specimen I 

 actually measured, killed by natives near Fashoda, was 14 feet 

 long. The only really large ones we saw were on the Bahr-el- 

 Jebel, between Heliat Nuer and Sharube ; on the 7th April I saw 

 two or three that I estimated to be perhaps 20 feet in length. 



Family Geckonid^e. 



Hemidactylus beookii Gray. 



Four Geckoes of this species were caught at Gabt-el-Meghahid 

 in April. 



Family Varani^e. 



Varancs niloticus (Linn.). 



This large Lizard was met with on the Zeraf and Jebel rivers. 

 A specimen from the Zeraf measured in total length 5 feet 



