THE LIZARDS 137 



Iguana is generally abundant and grows to a length of 

 six feet. It is pale, greenish gray, marked on the sides 

 with bold black bars; on the tail are broad black rings. 

 The spines of the males are pinkish. Female examples 

 are darker, usually brownish, while the young of both 

 sexes show a considerable amount of bright green. 



A friend tells the writer he once observed a peculiar 

 sight in which iguanas participated. It was along the 

 line of a South American railroad. Running parallel 

 with the track was the proverbial line of telegraph poles. 

 These had a rough surface, having evidently been cut 

 from the adjacent forest, which was typical of the trop- 

 ics in the density of growth. Each telegraph pole was 

 crowned with a cluster of iguanas, piled on one another's 

 backs on the cross-arm and clinging around the pole for 

 a short distance beneath this. The train passed through 

 several miles of this curious scenery. As the locomotive 

 passed each pole the mass of iguanas would be seen 

 making vigorous efforts to get higher, with the result 

 of many losing their hold and falling to the ground, 

 when they scurried for the undergrowth. Those remain- 

 ing excitedly and repeatedly nodded their heads, their 

 antics being easily noted from a train pulled by a tardy, 

 wood-burning engine. 



This species is largely herbivorous, though by no 

 means strictly so. As a captive it is fond of lettuce, 

 celery, clover, bananas and berries. Most specimens will 

 eat meal worms voraciously; few are averse to young 

 birds and such small rodents as mice and young rats. 

 Very young individuals chase about actively for insect 

 larvae, being lively enough to make successful jumps 

 for an occasional fly. 



Throughout tropical America a very cruel method is 

 employed in exhibiting iguanas at the markets, where 



