S'- 



48 



LACERTAE 



CHAP. 



Indian Islands, and through Central America into the warmer 

 parts of the United States. 



Tupinavibis ("Teju"). — The skin of the back is smooth, 

 covered with small scales ; with large scales on the top of the 

 head. The skin on the neck is generally thrown into two ir- 

 regular transverse folds. The long and narrow tongue is capable 

 of being telescoped into a sheath at its base. The lateral teeth 

 are compressed and tricuspid in the young, but the later genera- 

 tions of teeth have obtuse crowns in the adult. 2\ tcguixin is 



Fig. 141 



^'77^%«J' 



-Tupinambis nig ropunctatus. 



the largest member of the whole family ; it reaches a length of a 

 yard, most of which, however, belongs to the tail. The general 

 colour is bluish black, with pale or whitish -yellow spots on the back, 

 Hanks, and tail, coml)ining into more or less transversely arrani^ed 

 hands. The limbs are black, with many and tiny yellow dots. 

 The ground-colour of the under parts is reddish yellow, with 

 irregular black bars. This sjiecies inhabits the greater ])art of 

 South America, east of the Andes, from Uruguay to the "West 

 Indies. 7'. nigropunctatus is confined to the Continent, and lacks 

 the dark cross-bands on the belly, whicli is uniformly yellowish 

 or speckled with black. 



