THE LIZARDS 115 



disappeared at a suspiciously rapid rate. The move- 

 ments of the geckos are wonderfully quick. Observed 

 at night, they dart over the walls and ceiling at a glid- 

 ing gait equaling the speed of a frightened mouse on 

 the floor. 



Among the most tiny of the geckos are the species 

 of Splicer odactylus. They are to be found in the West 

 Indies, Central America and Colombia. Some of 

 them have a round pupil. There is a single, adhesive 

 pad on each digit. S. notatus is so diminutive it might 

 be mistaken for an insect. Most specimens are under 

 two and a half inches long. The color is rusty brown 

 with obscure dark markings arranged in longitudinal 

 streaks. This species is found on some of the most 

 southern of the Florida keys, in Cuba and the Bahama 

 Islands. It may often be discovered hiding under the 

 eaves of houses during mid-day. During the late 

 afternoon the active little creatures emerge in search of 

 parasitic insect prey. Some of the species of Sphae- 

 rodactylus are prettily blotched, speckled or banded. 



Family Eublepharidce. The scattered genera of this 

 small family are represented in Africa, India, North 

 America and Central America. From the Geckonidce 

 the present family is separated by differences in the 

 structure of the vertebra? and the skull; besides, all the 

 species have functional eyelids. 



The single North American species, Eublepharis 

 variegatus, occurs in the southwestern portion of the 

 United States, from southwestern Texas to California. 

 It grows to a length of three or four inches and is a 

 pretty creature, quite gecko-like in form, with a brown 

 ground color crossed by bright bands of lemon-yellow — 

 though some individuals are speckled with the paler hue. 

 This lizard lives in rocky places — retreating into crev- 



