10 



Indeeil the variation of the spots on the side of the head seen in 

 the nortliern Cnemidophori even lead one to suspicion the validity of 

 C t. undulatus as a good sub-soecies. But the almost total absence of 

 specimens in the collection from the range of C. tigris prevent this 

 matter being looked into more thoroughly at present. 



Considered as above C t. undulatus has been also taken (3617) at 

 Bell's Station, Santa Clara Co., Oal., as well as at Perris Valley, and 

 Riverside, Riverside Co., and at Oak Grove and Chihuahua Mts., San 

 Diego Co., Cal., by Mr. Coolidge. 



Mr. Coolidge, while in the Chihuahua Mountains, San Diego 

 county, Cal., during the summer of 1897, found four eggs of this form 

 lying on top of the small pile of earth, which he says is always found 

 at the entrance to the burrows of these reptiles. _They were lying in 

 the open air exposed to the full glare of the sun, where they had 

 evidently been left to incubate by the mother. The embryos were 

 Hearing the point of hatching, as all external characters [except that 

 of coloration] were fully developed and the yolk sac wa.'* pretty well 

 absorbed. The shell enveloping the young is a tough, membranous 

 structure, oval in shape and less .than an inch in lengih. As there 

 are bur few and scanty records of the breeding habits of reptiles, it 

 gives me pleasurelt6 mention thii, interesting statement concerning 

 their early Iffe histofy. ' 



28. Cnemidophorus hyperythra beldinsri (STEJNEGER). 

 Mr. Heller obtained one at Dulzura, San Diego, county, Cal. 



FAMILY. SCII^D^. 



29. Eumeces skiltonifinns (BATRH & CiIRARD). Thip skink 

 has been takan at [3639-3648] Fvfie P. O. and Sugar Loaf P. O., L; 

 Dorado county, Cal.; [3423] at Anderson, Shasta county; [342I-.3422] 

 Stockton, San Joaquin county, and [2417] at Wright's Station, Santa 

 Clara county, Cal. 



Mr. Heller collected one ot these lizards at Palo Alto, Santa Clara 

 county, Cal., in February, J.8fS, which had a salmon colored tail. On 

 the 17th of the saiiie month, five ether specimens [3774-3778] were 

 taken in the neighborhood of the University, all of which had salmon 

 colored tails. The last three small ones have since then had the color 

 fade considerably. During December I collected a number, all of 

 which had bright blue tails. Tliis variation in color suggests that it 

 might be a seasonal change. Mr. Coolidge, however, took a small 

 specimen with a bright pinkish-red tail at Chihuahua Mountains, 

 San Diego county, Cal., in July, 1897. The real cause of this varia- 

 tion is as yet unknown. 



Mr. Van Denburgh t on two specimens from San Francisquito, 

 Sierra Laguna, Lower California, describes his Eumeces lagunensis, 

 which he diagnoses as '"Similar to E. skiltonianus, but tail salmon 

 color instead of blue, and with interparietal smaller than either fron- 

 toparietal instead of larger." 



Now our fkiliomanus that have the salmon colored tail all have 

 normal head plates. An examination of the not verv large series in 

 the Stanford University Zoological Museum show the head plates all 

 to be normal. One of the distinguishing characters of E. lagunensis i? 

 seen to be of no specific value, and as it is very likely its head plates 

 show as much variation as is seen in other lizards, it is not improba- 

 ble that Mr. Van Denburgh's species has abnormal head shields and 

 is simply a synonym of E. slciltonia nm. 



Mr. Coolidge took a specimen with a blue tail in the San Bernar- 

 dino Mouniains, Cal., during the summer of 1897.* 



T Froc. Cala. Acal. Sci., ser. 2, V. 1*.>7, p. 134. 



* Since the above was written the writer is able to add a few words regarding ihe 

 brei ding habits oi this specit-s. Under date of July 4th, 1898. my friend Mr. Edmund 

 Heller wrote me trom Pacific Grove, Cal., that he li'ad secured the eggs of Eamecfg. At 

 a later date, when asked for fnrihtr information, he replied (August 2(Jtb) : -'In re- 



