REPTILES THRIVE in the desert 

 country of Baja California and 

 among islands of the gulf. Mem- 

 bers of the expeditions to this 

 region find excellent oppor- 

 tunity to study many unusual 

 reptiles. In the photo at left 

 Captain Hancock is shown cap- 

 turing an oddly spotted chuck- 

 walla fSauromaius varius) 

 among the rocks of San Esteban 

 Island. 



SPOTTED CHUCKWALLA found on San 

 Esteban Island in the Gulf of California 

 is not a poisonous reptile. The only liz- 

 ard of the western Americas recognized 

 as poisonous is the famed Gila monster 

 of desert regions in the southwestern 

 United States. 



BLACK CHUCKWALLA found on Pond 

 Island in the Gulf of California is rated 

 as an unusually agile reptile, and has 

 sharp pointed spines rising from its 

 scaly skin. Nearly all such lizards bear 

 protective colorings peculiar to their 

 habitat. 



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