Africa, Southern -- Description and travel; Natural history -- Africa, Southern
Vertical shield elongate, twice as long as broad, longer than the two
frontals together, or than the occipital which is rounded behind.
Rostral shield extending on the upper surface of the head; loreal
square; anteocular large, extending to the upper surface of the head,
but not reaching the vertical; two post-oculars. Eight upper labials,
the fourth and fifth entering the orbit, the last small. Two large
anterior temporals which are in contact with both post-oculars; the
outer temporals scale-like. Scales in seventeen rows, with a single
apical groove. Ventrals 168; anal bifid; sub-caudals 61. Posterior
maxillary tooth grooved. Ground colour light olive, with three well
defined brown longitudinal bands; the median one commences behind the
occipital and is lost in the middle of the tail; it occupies the median
series of scales, and has a fine yellow line running along its middle;
the lateral band commences underneath the canthus rostralis, and is
continued to the end of the tail; it occupies the third and fourth
outer series of scales and the adjoining halves of the neighbouring
series; it has narrow black edges; the outermost series of scales is
white like the abdomen, but with a faint brownish line. Lower parts
pure white.
Total length 19 inches; the cleft of the mouth measuring six lines, and
the tail 3½ inches.
Family DRYIOPHIDÆ.
DRYIOPHIS OATESII, sp. n. (Plate D.)
Allied to _Dryiophis Kirtlandii_, but the rostral shield is not
reverted to the upper surface of the head; the præocular reaches to
the upper surface only, remaining far distant from the vertical. Two
post-oculars: temporals 1 + 2 + 2, the anterior being the smallest, and
in contact with the upper post-ocular.
Head with very peculiar colouration; the upper surface is ornamented
by a pink T-shaped figure, the horizontal bar stretching from eye
to eye, and the vertical part occupying the middle of the occipital
shields. This figure is finely mottled with black. An irregular,
oblique, blackish line from the eye to the penultimate upper labial,
the pink temporal scales margined with black. Body coloured as in _D.
Kirtlandii_.
Total length 47 inches; the tail measuring 19 inches; length of the
cleft of the mouth 14 lines.
[Illustration:
App.Pl.C.
R.Mintern lith. Mintern Bros. imp.
CORONELLA TRITÆNIA.]
[Illustration:
App.Pl.D.
R. Mintern lith. Mintern Bros. imp.
DRYIOPHIS OATESII.]
IV.
ENTOMOLOGY.
By J. O. WESTWOOD, M.A., F.L.S., Etc.
Hope Professor of Zoology in the University of Oxford.
(PLATES E-H.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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