New York, June 20, 1914. No. 7 



OFEl 



Published by the contributors to advance the Science of cold- 

 blooded vertebrates. 



NOTES OX THE GILA MONSTER, 



In May, 1907, the Children's Museum in 

 Brooklyn received a fine specimen, 17 inches in 

 length, of the Gila Monster, Heloderma suspectum 

 Cope, captured a few weeks previous near Tucson, 

 Arizona. When it died, February 3, 1914, or 

 almost seven years after captivity, it measured 

 18 inches. 



At tirst vicious and ever ready with partly 

 open jaws and quick motions of the head to snap 

 at an intruder, the lizard became sluggish after a 

 few weeks, rarely attempting to bite even when 

 handled. It frequently drank water, but refused 

 to take food, such as eggs, whole or beaten, chopped 

 beef, or milk. After two months of such behavior, 

 forcible feeding was resorted to. This was accom- 

 plished by means of a glass tube, § inch in diameter 

 and 18 inches long. The procedure briefly was as 

 follows: grasping the lizard just behind the head 

 and holding it in a vertical position the jaws were 

 pried open with a strong pair of dental forceps, the 

 tube inserted to a depth of from 2 to 2£ inches and 

 the contents of one beaten egg allowed to run 

 down. Thereafter this operation was repeated 

 once a month. It worked perfectly ; there was no 



