THE CAMELEON. 159 



Fix inches long, ending in a kind of a thick knot, hollow, attached to a 

 kind of fpike, which enters into its cavity, and which it JJjeatbSy when 

 drawn on to it j it has a vifcous liquid on it, which holds flies and 

 other infeds, on which the cameleon feeds; this he darts rapidly. Can 

 live long (almoft a year fay fome) without eating ; he has no voice, but 

 a kind of hifs when furprifed. The eyes ftand out of the head : they 

 have a fingle eye-lid, fhagreened like the reft, attached to tlie eye, and 

 following its motion, through a crevice in which the fight of the eye 

 appears, which is of a fhining brown; and round it is a little circle 

 of a gold colour j the animal often moves one eye, when the other is at 

 reft ; fometimes one will look diredly forward, the other backward i one 

 upward, the other downward. Has five very long toes on each foot;- 

 nails ftrong and hooked ; the (kin of the legs extends to the ends of the 

 toes, and unites them together, yet fo that they are divided into two 

 parcels, one of three toes : the other two in the front foot the exterior 

 parcel has the two toes j in the hind foot the iaterior has the two toes. 

 He is not fond of water; but by this conformation of his feet he eafily 

 gripes fmall branches of trees; for his further fecurity, his tail is pre- 

 henfile, and ferves as a fifth hand. When he changes place, and attempts 

 to defcend from an eminence, he moves with the utmoft precaution, ad- 

 vancing one If'g very deliberately before the other, ftill fecuring himfelf, 

 by holding wha'tever he can grafp with his tail. 



The head of a large cameleon is two inches long ; from thence, to the 

 beginning of the tail, four or five: the tail five inches, the feet two 

 and a half: the body differs in thicknefs, at difi^erent times ; fometimes, 

 from the back to the belly, it is two inches, fometinnres but one, for it 

 can expand or contrad itfelf at pleafure, not only throughout the back 

 and belly, but alfo the legs and tail. The cameleon is often thus blown 

 up for two hours together; then it becomes lefs and lefs, infenfibly ; 

 for the dilatation is always more quick and vifible than the contraftion. 

 In its contracted ftate, the animal appears extremel'^ lean ; the fpine of 

 the backfeems (harp, and all the ribs may be counted ; the tendons of 

 the legs and arms may be feen very diftindly. This method of puffing 

 itfelf up is fimilar to that in pigeons, whofe crops are fometimes greatly 

 dillc-ndcd with air. The cameleon has a power of driving the air it 

 breathes frOm its lungs over every port of the body, tail and legs, between 

 the fkin and mufcles ; the mufcles themfclves are never fwoln. The 

 fkin is very cold to the touch ; and though the animal feems fo lean, 



there 



