抄録
Typopeltis stimpsonii is found in the southwestern part of Kyushu, where it occurs either in graveyards or in cultivated fields on hillsides and hides by day under stones. The breeding season ranges from late June to early July. The female lays eggs within a burrow, which is often found in the earth beneath a stone (fig. 1). When the eggs are laid, a viscid fluid flows from the genital opening, and an egg sac is made from it. The eggs are spherical, or broadly oval, 3-3. 5mm in diameter, white in color, and are placed in the sac. With the progress of egg-laying, the sac becomes bulged with eggs. The number of eggs varies from 32 to 40. The completed sac is somewhat horseshoe-shaped, 18-20mm in length, 20-22mm in width, 8-10mm in thick, and is attached to the sternal plate of the third abdominal segment of the mother (fig. 2). At first the sac is transparent, but, later, becomes tinged with reddish brown. About a month after the egg-laying, the hatching of the young and the first true molt occur simultaneously. At this time the mother rubs the egg sac repeatedly against the ground, thus the sac is broken. The youngs of the first postembryonal stage measure about 7mm in body length (fig. 2). They mount the back of the mother and stay there for a few days. Then the youngs leave the mother and hide in the ground, where they will undergo the second molt. The molting appears to occur once a year, usually in summer, and the female molts at least six times before becoming mature.
