﻿4. DIPSOSAURUS 77 



bunches } the spines of the cactus serving to protect them 

 from the quick swoops of hungry hawks and the digging of 

 larger enemies. Dr. C. Hart Merriam says: "It is a strict 

 vegetarian, feeding on buds and flowers, which it devours 

 in large quantities. No insects were found in any of the 

 stomachs examined; some contained beautiful bouquets of 

 the yellow blossoms of acacia, the orange malvastrum, the 

 rich purple Dalea, and the mesquite (Prosopis juliftora); 

 others contained leaves only." Heller as quoted by Meek 

 states: "This lizard is very common about the sand dunes 

 in Death Valley, where it lives in burrows beneath the stems 

 of mesquite. It is often seen on the stems of the mesquite, 

 eating the foliage." 



Mr. Camp writes: "These round-nosed, large-tailed 

 lizards are fairly common in the low plain environment in 

 the sandy tracts south of Blythe Junction, and in the washes 

 traversing the alluvial slopes about the Turtle Mountains. 

 They appear to avoid rocky ground, being absent from the 

 hill-sides and mesas. They are shy when approached and 

 run swiftly, with tail slightly raised, to the shelter of a bush, 

 or into a chipmunk's or kangaraoo-rat's burrow. When 

 wounded they puff themselves up till their sides become 

 taut, and may then be pulled from a small hole only with 

 difficulty. With curiosity aroused they prop themselves 

 high on their fore limbs, attentively viewing the passer-by 

 and seldom 'showing off' with up-and-down movements of 

 the body. 



"These lizards are phytophagous and may be sometimes 

 surprised in the act of raiding the young leaves of low 

 bushes, in the upper foliage of which they forage during 

 the hottest part of the day. The stomach of a medium- 

 sized individual contained two grams of the leaves and fruit 

 of a malvaceous annual, Sfhceralcea amblgua. 



"Remains of a desert iguana were found below the cliff- 



