w 



HOLAECHUS 139 



"Maxillary teeth 8 to 12, posterior very strongly enlarged and 

 compressed ; mandibular teeth subequal. Head short, not dis- 

 tinct from neck; eye rather small, with round pupil; rostral 

 large. Body cylindrical ; scales smooth or feebly keeled, in 13 

 to 21 rows, with or without apical pits ; ventrals rounded or 

 obtusely keeled laterally. Tail short or moderate ; subcaudals in 

 two rows." (Boulenger.) 



The species of this genus are distributed through southern 

 Asia, China, .Japan, the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, .Java, Borneo, 

 and the Philippines. Four species enter our territory. 



Much confusion has resulted from a study of Philippine speci- 

 mens, particularly Holarchus ancorus, which appears to have 

 been described from an anomalous specimen. 



Key to the Philippine species of Holarchus Cope. 



a\ Anal entire. 



b\ Third and fourth labials entering eye. 



c'. Loreal as long as deep; brown with a pink medial longitudinal 

 line, and an indistinct lateral line; a row of dim black spots 

 on second scale row; below bright rose. 



H. meyerinkii (Steindachner) (p. 1-39). 

 c". Loreal longer than deep; pale brownish to lavender with 19 trans- 

 verse dark spots; below yellow to bright pink. 



H. ancorus (Girard) (p. 140). 



h'-. Fourth labial entering eye; loreal absent; pale lavender with 22 or 



2.3 dark blackish brown dorsal blotches; yellowish below with black 



spots on ventrals -- H. macnlatus Taylor (p. 143). 



a'. Anal divided; fourth labial entering eye; loreal present, little longer 

 than wide; dark purplish brown with a dull salmon streak dorsally; 

 22 narrow transverse dark blotches- H. burksi Taylor (p. 14.5). 



HOLARCHUS MEYERINKII (Steindachner) 

 Plate 14; Plate 17, figs. 6 and 7 

 Simotes meyerinkii Steindachner, Sitzb. Ak. Wien (1891) 294. 

 HolarchMs meyerlinkii, Taylor, Philip. .Journ. Sci. § D 13 (1918) 360. 

 Siw.otes octolineat'iis Boulenger var. c, Cat. Snakes Brit. Mus. 2 

 (1894) 224. 

 Description of species. — (From No. 188, Bureau of Science 

 collection; collected at Papahag, Sulu Archipelago, October 14, 

 1917, by E. H. Taylor.) Rostral broader than deep, the portion 

 seen from above a little more than half its distance from frontal ; 

 internasals much smaller than prefrontals, the suture between 

 them little less than that between prefrontals; latter broader 

 than long, touching only posterior part of nasal; frontal much 

 longer than wide, longer than its distance from end of snout, 

 longer and wider than supraocular and longer than parietals; 

 latter longer than broad, bordered by 2 temporals, and touching 



