138 THE. VIVARIUM. 
herbivorous, e¢.g., Iguana, Brachylophus, Amblyrhynchus, Cono- 
lophus, Phymaturus, Sauromalus, and Basiliscus; the genus 
Ctenosaura is supposed to be both insectivorous and herbivorous. 
All the Iguanide, with one or two exceptions, are thought to be 
oviparous. 
Many of these interesting Reptiles are able to change their 
colours in a wonderful manner, so much so indeed, that some of 
them for this reason have been called chameleons, by people who - 
imagine that only the chameleon has this strange power. Other 
Reptiles, as well as certain of the Batrachians, have this capa- 
bility in a more or less marked degree. 
Some of the larger of the Jguanide readily take to water, and 
swim, by the help of their compressed and powerful tail, in a 
very Newt-like fashion. Travellers tell us that while ascending 
the rivers of Tropical America, they have been frequently 
startled by the sudden splash made by one of these creatures, 
as, frightened by the boat, it jumps clumsily into the water. 
The late Mr. Charles Darwin, in his ‘‘ Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle, ”’ 
relates a curious fact concerning the sea-inhabiting dmblyrhynchus, 
a Lizard which is able to swim and to dive exceedingly well, and 
remain under water for at least an hour. He says that when it 
is frightened it is unwilling to take refuge in the sea, and will not 
even be driven into it. The great naturalist accounted for this 
strange conduct by ‘‘the circumstances that this Reptile has no 
enemy whatever on shore, whereas at sea it must often fall 
a prey to numerous sharks.” ‘This Lizard lives chiefly upon 
sea-weed. 
The flesh of the larger of the Jguanide is considered a great 
delicacy by the people who live in the lands where the creatures 
are found. The eggs of the animals, which are covered with a 
yellow parchment-like envelope, and are buried, for incubation, 
in sand, are also eaten, and are more relished, as a rule, than 
even those of the Turtle. 
These large Lizards are hunted for with dogs trained for the 
purpose, and their flesh and eggs, in former times, used to be re- 
garded as articles of commerce. It is very difficult to find the 
Reptiles without the assistance of dogs, for their colouring, which 
is so like that of their surroundings, and their almost invariable 
