REPTILIA 311 



is a generalized type. It eats insect larvae but is not able to digest 

 those with hard chitinous coverings. Its tail is very brittle and 

 quickly dropped off when the animal is irritated. The common 

 swift {Sceleporus spinosus undulatus) is an arboreal lizard living 

 chiefly on tree-inhabiting insects. It deposits its eggs, which re- 

 semble tortoise eggs, in a rather deep tunnel. 



Fig. 169. Ringed gecko, ventral view. Tarentola annularis. Northern Africa. 



(Courtesy of N. Y. Zool. Soc.) 



T\v^ flying dragon {Draco volans) (Figure 170) lives in the Indo- 

 Malay region. It has membranes stretched between the fore and 

 hind limbs and extends these to plane from tree to tree or limb to 

 limb. It is brightly colored like the flowers among which it lives. 



The horned-toad {Phrynosoma cornutum) (Figure 171) is a true 

 lizard armed with long neck spines and peculiarly adapted for desert 

 life, having a dull grey concealing color and being equipped with 

 valves in its nostrils which prevent the inhalation of fine sand. It 

 drinks dewdrops and eats insect larvae and ants. Captive speci- 

 mens have been observed by Ditmars and others to shoot jets ot 

 blood from the eyes a distance of five feet. The animal is not 

 poisonous, is easily tamed, and can be " hypnotized " by gently 

 stroking its ventral surface. 



