REPTILIA. 315 



Island do not know of any such species, though they are thoroughly familiar 

 with the local fauna. This ground inhabiting species has probably been exter- 

 minated by the introduced cats. No cats are found feral upon Little Swan 

 Island, only upon Swan Island, but the lizard may have occurred upon this 

 island only. 



Scolecosarus alleni, sp. nov. 

 Plate, fig. 11-15. 



The fact that this curious burrowing teid genus occurred on Grenada was 

 first made known by Garman (Bull. Essex inst., 1887, 19, p. 12). He obtained 

 a single specimen there, and identified it with Scolecosaurus cuvieri Fitz. As a 

 matter of fact, this name should really stand as Scolecosaurus cuvieri (Dum. and 

 Bibr.), all previous references to the species being nomina nuda, or unrecogniz- 

 able descriptions. A careful examination of the seven specimens obtained by 

 Allen and Braes shows that, as might well be expected, the Grenadian examples 

 really are distinct from those which Dumeril and Bibron described; and which 

 came from Colombia. It is said to occur in Venezuela, and more recently it 

 has been recorded from Trinidad by Mole and Urich (Journ. Trinidad field, nat. 

 club, 1894, 2, p. 82). Specimens collected recently by Dr. Thaxter enable me 

 to compare the species from Grenada and Trinidad. 



Type:— No. 7,793, M. C. Z., an adult, St. George's, Grenada, G. M. Allen, 

 collector. 



Upper head shields consisting of a pentagonal internasal, a pair of prefrontals 

 forming a short suture, a frontal considerably longer than broad, heptagonal, 

 a pair of large parietals, a narrow quadrangular interparietal of equal length, 

 * and four supraoculars. Nasal more than twice as broad as high; loreal about 

 one half the size of nasal; the longest infraorbital in contact with the third, 

 fourth, and fifth supralabials ; eight temporals ; six upper labials, third and last 

 largest, and of almost equal size; six lower labials; mental equal in size to one 

 of the first pair of labials next to it; first pair of chin shields posterior to the large 

 postmental, forming a wide suture; collar shields enlarged, eight in number. 

 Twenty-eight scales around middle of body, and forty from occiput to base of tail ; 

 ventrals somewhat longer than broad, forming eight longitudinal series, and 

 twenty-six transverse series from the two enlarged pectorals to the preanals; 

 these are four in number, and the median posterior is the smallest. Tail long, 

 rounded at the end; covered with imbricate elongate hexagonal scales, the upper 

 smooth, the lower carinated. Reddish brown above, lighter beneath. Varia- 



