Chap. IV. THE IGUANA. 121 



green, and red. P. Echelus of this group, which is so 

 common at Par^, was here absent, and its place supplied 

 by the closely related P. ^neides. Both have the same 

 habits, and seem to fill similar spheres in the natural 

 economy of the two districts. Another handsome but- 

 terfly taken here was a member of the Erycinidas family, 

 the Alesa Prema, which is of a dazzling emerald-green 

 colour chequered with black. I caught here a young 

 Iguana ; Iguanas, however, are extremely common 

 everywhere throughout the country. They are espe- 

 cially numerous in the neighbourhood of villages, where 

 they climb about fruit-trees overrun with creepers. The 

 eggs, which are oblong, and about an inch and a half in 

 length, are laid in hollow trees, and are very pleasant 

 eating taken raw and mixed with farinha. The colour 

 of the skin in the Iguana changes like that of the 

 chameleon ; in fact, it is called chameleon by the 

 Portuguese. It grows to a length of five feet, and be- 

 comes enormously fat. This lizard is interesting to 

 English readers on account of its relationship to the 

 colossal fossil reptile of the Wealden, the Iguanodon. 

 The Iguana is one of the stupidest animals I ever met 

 with. The one I caught dropped helplessly from a 

 tree just ahead of me ; it turned round for a moment 

 to have an idiotic stare at the intruder, and then set off 

 running along the pathway. I ran after it, and it then 

 stopped as a timid dog would do, crouching down, and 

 permitting me to seize it by the neck and carry it off. 



We lost here another of our crew ; and thus, at the 

 commencement of our voyage, had before us the prospect 



