EINAR LÖNNBERG, REPTILES. 



in March. In Boulenger's Cat. of Chelonians Brit. Mus. the length of the shell of 

 this species is recorded to be 22 cm. My large specimen is thus almost 1 7* time 

 as large. 



The distribution of this species extends from Natal to Somaliland. 



Lacertilia. 



Fifteen species of true lizards were collected at Guaso Nyiri and in the thorn- 

 bush country north of this river. One of these viz. Gerrhosaurus bergi Werner was 

 hitherto only known from Usambara, and another Hemidactylus squamulatus Tornier 

 is described from Kakorna, Ugundu, but all the others have been recorded from So- 

 maliland. Some of the latter have a wide distribution as Hemidactylus mabouia, H. 

 brooki, Varanus idiotiens, V. ocellatus (only in East Africa), Latastia longicaudata, Able- 

 pharus wahlbergi, and Mabuia quinquetceniata. The remaining lot are, as it seems, 

 true members of the Somali-fauna, viz. Hemidactylus ruspolii, H. macropholis, Agama 

 vaillanti, A. lionotus, Eremias spekei sextceniata, and E. smiihi. The lacertilian fauna 

 of the Guaso Nyiri country can thus be said to agree well with that of Somaliland 

 as far as the knowledge goes for the present, although, of course, by the numerous 

 expeditions in the Somali countries a much greater number of species has been made 

 known from there. 



Of the eight species of lizards which have been caught by this expedition in 

 the country between Meru borna and Nairobi Mabuia striata and Äblepharus wahlbergi 

 have a very wide distribution, and Agama dorice and Mabuia megalura extend över 

 the greater part of East Africa from Abyssinia in the north southwards through 

 German East Africa. Gonatodes africanus appears to belong to the middle parts of 

 East Africa viz. to the British and German possessions. Lacerta jacksoni has by the 

 discoveries of låter years been proved to have a rather wide distribution in the forest 

 districts of East and Central Africa (conf. below.). Its distribution agrees with that 

 of certain birds, and it is not a member of the East African steppefauna. 



The two species of Lygosoma, one of which is described as new, are hitherto 

 only found in the Kenia district and may be endemic there. 



A few years ago Werner published an account on the herpetological fauna of 

 Sudan. 1 According to this six species of those which I collected in the Guaso Nyiri 

 district are found in Sudan as well, viz. the widely distributed Hemidactylus brookii, 

 Varanus ocellatus, V. niloticus, Latastia longicaudata and Mabuia quinquetceniata, and 

 in addition to this also Eremias spekei sextceniata. The fauna of the Guaso Nyiri 

 country has thus with regard to the lizards no close relationship to the fauna of 

 Sudan because the species which are coramon to both are found south of Guaso 

 Nyiri as well. 



If on the other hand a comparison is made between the lacertilian fauna of 

 the Kenia district and that of the Kilimanjaro district it will be found that with the 



1 Sitzber. d. K. Akad. Wiss. Wien, Math. Nat. Kl., Bd. CXVI, Abt. I. Wien 1908. 



