broad anteriorly, and somewhat club-shaped; interparietal plate rounded
anteriorly, truncated posteriorly, and much wider before than behind; palpebral
plates two, sometimes three, the middle one then rudimentary, the shield
formed by the whole is edged anteriorly, posteriorly, and externally, with a
band of small subgranular scales ; occipital plate small, and of an irregular
shape; frenal plate, quadrangular; anti-ocular plate large, quadrangular, and
deeper behind than in front; upper labial plates six; the hindermost irregular,
lengthened, and forms a part of the angle of the mouth. Lower eyelid
with two transparent plates, forming a disc near its centre, the hinder-
most smallest, elsewhere it is coated with small granular scales. Opening
to ear, vertical, subovate, and, anteriorly, margined with four or five small
projecting scales; antepectoral fold distinct, its hinder edge throughout free
and margined with about fourteen small plates. Breast and belly with
oblique rows of subquadrangular plates, from ten to twelve in each row;
guttural plates small, ovate, and disposed in oblique rows; preanal plates
in four transverse rows, five or six in the last and two in the first row. Fore
legs, anteriorly, superiorly, and posteriorly, coated with irregularly triangular
imbricate scales, a few near the toes carinated ; inferiorly with small granular
ones ; hinder legs superiorly and posteriorly covered with small granular
scales; anteriorly and inferiorly with rather large, subtriangular, imbricate
scales: the tarsi superiorly also with small similarly shaped scales, all of
which are strongly keeled. Toes, very slender ; claws, slightly curved and
pointed. The longest toe, when the fore legs are placed along the side of the
head, reaches exactly to the point of the nose, and the longest of the hinder
feet, when the legs are placed along the side, touches the angle of the mouth.
Femoral pores about thirteen.
Length from point of nose to anus, 2 inches ; length of tail, 3 inches.
Inhabits the arid sandy flats between Cape Town and Little Namaqualand.
R e p t il ia .— P l a t e XLIY. F ig . 2.
E. supeme lineis nigro-brunneis quinque et rubro-aurantiis quatuor notata; capite parvo antice gracile;
squamis ventralibus in linea transversa duodecim; cauda gracile longissima.
Longitudo capitis corporis que 2 unc.; cauda unc.
C o l o u r .—Back and upper parts of sides marked with nine narrow longitudinal
lines, five of which are liver-brown, and the other four light reddish
orange. Of the five, one extends along the middle of the back, from the hind
head to the base of the tail, is bifid anteriorly, and has usually, within the
fork, a short rudimentary streak of the same colour, from two to three lines in
length; the two lines on each side commence near to the hinder angle of the
eye, the lowermost, the widest, crosses the external ear, and both terminate
at the commencement of the tail. In adult specimens, generally, these lines
are finely freckled with light reddish orange. The light lines are narrower
than the dark ones, which lie immediately on each side of them. Below the
black lines the sides are an uniform cream-yellow ; the extremities superiorly
and posteriorly clove-brown, speckled with cream-yellow; head, superiorly,
clove-brown, with a coppery gloss ; lips cream-yellow ; tail, above, light reddish
orange, or wine-yellow. The under parts of the neck, body, extremities,
and tail, yellowish white.
In young specimens the dark lines are without variegations, of a very deep
colour, and contrast strongly with the light ones, which are nearly white.
F o rm , &c .— Figure slender ; tail very long, and extremely delicate towards
the point; head, posteriorly, four-sided; anteriorly, slender and subcylindri-
cal; the snout slightly obtuse; nasal plates contiguous, naso-rostral six-sided,
anteriorly pointed ; fronto-nasal six-sided, and separated from each other by
a small five-sided plate, palpebral plates two, margined anteriorly, externally
and posteriorly, with small granular scales, interparietal plate five-sided,
broadest anteriorly, occipital plate four-sided, the hinder side the longest,
and slightly arched; superior labial plates of left side, three in front of