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No. 426.] THE COMMON GARTER SNAKE. 489 
areas may be very small and only faintly reddish. The distinct- 
ness of the spots varies with the ground color. In one speci- 
men the sides below the lateral stripes are dark green; in 
another, brownish green; in the remaining eight specimens, 
various shades of brown. In two specimens various characters 
have aided each other in such a way as to give a fairly uniform 
reddish brown coloration above the lateral stripes, thus even 
going a step beyond the condition shown by Cope's Eutenta 
sirtalis obscura. The gastrosteges vary in color from greenish 
gray to slate gray or even brown. 
The general darkness of color is much accentuated by the 
age, not necessarily of the individual, but of the skin which 
the specimen is wearing at the time of examination. Six of the 
specimens brought from the Adirondacks have shed their skins 
since their arrival at the State Museum. Four of these had 
been examined with some care previous to this time, and 
reéxamination after shedding developed the fact that, while the 
markings are unchanged, the colors are sufficiently brightened 
by shedding to produce an impression of much lighter tint. 
To sum up these statements, I find that ten specimens of 
the common garter snake obtained (by an unmethodical selec- 
tion) from an area less than two acres in extent, located well 
within the Canadian life zone, represent, according to the 
criteria of various authors, the following subspecies: 

NuMBER OF SPECIMENS REPRESENTED. 







According to E. s. sirtalis. E. s. obscura. E. s. pallidula. 
SM o ord no ee IO SE one 
GU c ee V 8 2 ER 
ADADn 22 E dl rs -e di 




The specimens k (Nos. 15, 16, and 17) collected by Mr. Van 
Allen Lyman near Ausable Forks, Essex County, N.Y., which 
is also within the Canadian life zone, exhibit similar variations. 
1 Three of h ten specimens show charactors side with neither of Allen's 
descriptions ; epted by him as pallidula, 
De accep 
though few of them exhibit all the characteristics of that form. 

