THE IGUANOID LIZARDS 2499 



compressed scales; and a continuous crest of long spines runs from the nape along 

 the back, and is continued as a ridge on the tail. The scales on the back are small, 

 equal, and keeled; the neck has some scattered large conical or bluntly-keeled 

 tubercles, and there are also some large tubercular scales on the sides of the throat, 

 more especially one below the aperture of the ear; while on the under parts the 

 scales are either smooth or slightly keeled. The pores on the thighs are numerous, 

 and, in addition to those in the margins of the jaws, there are teeth on the pterygoid 

 bones of the palate. The common iguana {Iguana tuberculata) attains a length 

 of as much as a yard and a half, two-thirds of which are occupied by the tail. The 

 general color is green or greenish, becoming lighter on the under parts; but the 

 upper surface may be either uniform or variegated with darker brownish bands, 

 the flanks usually having light-edged vertical dark bars, while the tail has more or 

 less distinct dark rings. There is frequently a whitish band in front of the arm, 

 and some of the large tubercular scales on the sides of the throat and neck are often 

 light colored. . 



Both species of iguanas, of which there are several varieties, are essentially 

 arboreal lizards, generally frequenting those regions of the forests where the trees 

 overhang the water. Here they move with great agility, climbing or springing 

 from bough to bough, while the harmony of their coloration to their surroundings 

 renders them well-nigh invisible. Toward evening they not unfrequently descend 

 to the ground to feed; but, when frightened, immediately rush to the topmost 

 boughs of the trees, or plunge headlong into deep water. In the latter element 

 they are, indeed, perfectly at home, and swim strongly and swiftly, with their limbs 

 closely applied to their bodies, and impelled by their powerful tails. They are 

 likewise expert divers, frequently remaining for a considerable time below the sur- 

 face; their activity in the water being such that they are able to avoid all enemies 

 save crocodiles and caimans. Their chief food consists of leaves, flowers, and berries, 

 although they will also eat insects; the numbers of small worms sometimes found in 

 their stomachs having probably been swallowed accidentally. Generally seeking to 

 escape at once from human beings, iguanas when unable to flee show fight, erecting 

 their heads and assuming a fierce aspect, while at close quarters they bite savagely 

 and administer severe blows with their powerful tails. The female deposits from 

 eight to seventeen eggs in a hole dug in sandy soil, but as several individuals will 

 not unfrequently lay together, as many as ten dozen eggs may be found in a single 

 nest. In spite of their somewhat repulsive appearance, iguanas are hunted for the 

 sake of their flesh, which is white in color and delicate in flavor, and is said to re- 

 semble the breast of a chicken. The eggs also, which consist almost entirely of 

 yolk, are highly esteemed as articles of diet. Iguanas are generally captured by 

 means of nooses, which are thrown over their heads as they repose on the branches. 

 The much smaller horned iguana (Metopaeeros cornutus) of San Domingo constitutes 

 a separate genus, distinguished by the presence of an inflatable pouch on the throat. 

 The West-Indian ring-tailed iguana (Cydura carinata) is selected 

 to represent a group of genera distinguished from the foregoing by 

 the crowns of the cheek teeth being three cusped or simply conical. 

 While four of these genera among which is the Fijian iguana {Brachylophus 



