312 



ANIMAL LIFE 



crab are effective means in reducing the mortality among 

 these forms. The hard shell of the chelonians, the thick 

 skins of the alligator, tapir, and hippopotamus, the series 

 of bony plates covering the armadillo, and the spines of 

 the hedgehog, form armors of great value in the midst 

 of hostile associates. 



Special weapons of defense have been developed among 

 some groups, as in the case of the wasps and bees which 

 prevent the robbing of their homes and the killing of the 

 young, by the use of poisonous stings. Men have been 

 known to die as the result of an attack by a colony of bees. 

 The tarantula and tropical centipeds protect themselves 



FIG. 349. The rattlesnake defending itself against an enemy, f, poison fang; h, 

 hood holding the tooth against the roof of the mouth when not in action. 

 Photograph of posed dead snake. One third life size. 



by attacking the enemy with their poisoned mandibles, 

 while the scorpion releases itself from its tormentor by 

 applying its poisonous fang at the end of the tail. The 

 torpedo, a flat-bodied fish of the Atlantic coast, and the 

 six-foot electric eel of the South American waters give a 



