i. Reptiles. 



By 

 EINAR LÖNNBERG. 



The central parts of British East Africa are not particularly rich in reptiles, 

 and especially not during the dry season. When the Swedish Zoological Expedition 

 visited this country the dronght was in many places very severe. The »small rains» 

 in November 1910 had failed in some localities, and the »big rains» in 1911 were 

 delayed so that they did not begin in that part of the country where we were until 

 the last days of March. 1 In the region round Guaso Nyiri no rain had fallen for a 

 long time (more than a year the Rendiles said), and none did fall during our stay 

 there. The reptiles remained consequently for the most part hidden in their refuges, 

 and the conditions were extremely unfavourable for making herpelological collections. 

 It is therefore rather more than could be expected under such circumstances and 

 when the collecting time extended only through little more than three months to find 

 that the collection comprises representatives of 41 species viz. 1 Crocodile, 3 Che- 

 lonians, 27 Lizards (including Chamaeleons), and 10 Snakes. 



In very few places there was any regular occurrence of reptiles of any kind. 

 Still less there could be spöken of plenty of reptiles anywhere except that specimens 

 of Eremias and Latastia were common on the open plain north of Guaso Nyiri at 

 the crossing of the Marsabit road and just east of the same. Crocodiles were of 

 course rather numerous in Guaso Nyiri at certain places, Chamceleon jacksoni in the 

 shambas at Meru borna, and Mabuia quinquetainiata was rather common at certain 

 places in the thornbush country north of Guaso Nyiri. At rocky places near river- 

 beds Ägarnas could be expected but otherwise it appeared a mere chance to run 

 across some specimen of reptile during the dry season, and although I was on the 

 move from morning to night almost all the time it was seldom that I myself, or 

 any of my sharp-eyed native gunbearers saw any reptiles. 



And I finished the collecting work 1J /± returning to Europé via Mombasa a few days låter. 



