CLASS REPTILIA 



427 



Figure 301. The timber or banded rattlesnake {Crotalus horridus). A dangerously poisonous 

 species of the east and middle west; usually 3 or 4 feet long. (Courtesy of N.Y. Zoological Society.) 



Figure 302. A dinosaur (Brontosaurus) with man drawn to the same scale. This giant reptile 

 probably reached the maximum size possible for land animals; it is believed to have fed on soft 

 lush vegetation. (After Mavor.) 



Ichthyosaurs (Fig. 304) were fish-eating 

 aquatic reptiles. Their bodies were admir- 

 ably adapted for life in the water; they have 

 been called the "whales" of the Mesozoic 

 Era. The remains of ichthyosaurs occur in 

 North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and 

 Australia. They showed a high degree of 

 specialization for marine life. 



Pterosaurs, flying reptiles, had forelimbs 

 modified for flight. They resembled birds 

 in certain skeletal characters, but differed 

 from them in others. Pteranodon is the 

 largest form known; it had a skull two feet 

 long and a wing spread of more than 25 feet. 

 Teeth were absent, and the tail was short. 



RELATIONS OF 

 REPTILIA TO MAN 



The food of reptiles consists of both ani- 

 mals and plants. The animals eaten belong 

 to just about all classes, including the Rep- 

 tilia. Many of the snakes live almost entirely 

 upon birds and mammals. Frogs and fish are 

 favorite articles of food. Most of the smaller 

 species of reptiles feed upon worms and 

 insects. In general it may be stated that 

 reptiles do very little damage by destroying 

 animals and plants for food, but are often of 

 considerable benefit since they kill large 

 numbers of obnoxious insects and destruc- 



