SPHENOMORPHUS 



169 



rietal single, much wider than long; interparietal longer than 

 wide, rounded in front, pointed behind; parietals narrowly in 

 contact behind interparietal; a pair of nuchals (scale on right 

 side broken) ; nostril in a single nasal; latter followed by two 

 superimposed frenals, the upper largest; these are followed by 

 a low, elongate frenal three times as long as high, behind which 

 are two superimposed frenals, the upper largest; three super- 

 imposed preoculars; ten or eleven superciharies ; nine upper 

 labials separated from orbit by a row of scales ; several enlarged 

 temporal scales, the largest bordering parietal ; five or six lower 

 labials, all small, long, and narrow ; mental smaller than rostral, 



Fig. 17. Sphenomorphus acutus (Peters) ; a, head, dorsal view; h, head, lateral view; X 3. 



followed by two postmentals, the second of which is twice as 

 large as first, and three paired chin shields; thirty rows of 

 scales around body, the dorsals very much the largest, all per- 

 fectly smooth ; on neck the median rows are transversely dilated 

 and narrowed ; two enlarged preanals ; adpressed hind leg reaches 

 shoulder ; digits long and especially slender, compressed ; fourth 

 toe much the longest, with thirty-four smooth subdigital lamellse ; 

 nearer ear opening than end of snout; ear opening smaller 

 than eye opening, without lobules ; scales under tail transversely 

 elongate. 



Color in life. — Above light brown with a median irregular 

 series of black-brown spots that continue to the tail as irregular, 

 broken, indistinct bars on tail ; a black streak begins on nostril, 

 continuing to above arm, where it breaks into irregular spots 

 and continues to base of tail; chin, labials, throat, and belly 

 immaculate. 



