526 



LACERTAE 



knuwn us intussusception of the gut. They certainly could not 

 complain of the want of heat, since the bottom of their cage was 

 kept permanently warm by a lamp, and in the autumn they in- 

 . variably slept in the warmest part of the soil, avoiding the cool 

 regions which would have given them a chance of hibernating. 



Another consignment arrived in the month of February. 

 None of them ate anything or survived the early summer. 



U. <((•(! ntliiiiurus and U. spini/ics are common in Algeria, 



Fig. 128. — Uromastic acanthinurus. x\. 



Tunis, and Egypt, where they prefer sandy and ro.ky localities. 

 Their Arabic name is Dah. In Algeria they are sometimes 

 calletl " lezards des palmiers," perhaps because they eat dates, 

 besides berries, grass, and various llowers. Very large specimens 

 attain a lengtli of 18 inches. Like the other species of Uromastix 

 they have no voice. The African species can change colour 

 to a great extent. At a low temperature they are mostly grey 

 or brownish l)la('k above, dirty white below. When it is warmer 

 they change to ligliter shades of brown or even to orange yellow 

 and to green, with black or brown specks and vermiculations. 



