REPTILES — FROGS AND SALAMANDERS — FISHES 



35* 



Reptiles. 



brilliantly plumaged duck is the summer-duck (JEx sponsa), a member of the same 

 genus as the Asiatic mandarin-duck, and furnished with a similar long pendent crest. 

 Very few words, unfortunately, can be devoted to the reptiles of 

 the United States, although they are worthy the best attention of 

 the student of geographical distribution. Terrapins are numerous, very 

 characteristic being the box-tortoises, Cinyxis, in which the shell can be closed 

 by a movable flap. The snappers (Cicely dra and Macroclemmys), which com- 

 prise a few large aquatic species, are equally characteristic. There is also a 

 representative of the soft-tortoises (Trionyx ferox) in the southern United States. 

 The North American alligator (Alligator misvissippiensis) was, for a long time, the 

 only known living representative of its genus ; but, as mentioned above, it has a 

 cousin in China. Among snakes, the rattle-snakes, as typified by Crotalus durissus, 

 form a very distinctive American group, the common species living on sandy, stony 



FLORIDAX EEL-SALAMAXDER. 



ground among low bushes. Another well-known venomous snake is the water-viper 

 {Ancistrodon piscivovus), which dwells near water, in which it finds a safe refuge. 

 Frogs and Of the frogs the largest is the bull-frog (Rana catesbyana), 



Salamanders. w hich may attain a length of some 7i inches. It takes its name 

 from its loud roaring voice : besides smaller animals it eats frogs, fishes, and birds. 

 In another group we have the eel-salamander of Florida (Amphiuma means), dis- 

 tinguished by its yard-long, eel-shaped body and small three-toed feet ; and the siren 

 salamander (Siren lacerjtina), which is of nearly the same length, but distinguished 

 by having no hind-legs. Both generic types are exclusively North American. 

 Very characteristic are the salamanders of the genus Amblystoma, of which an 

 outlying species inhabits Siam. 



Four fishes alone can be mentioned. One is the blind-fish 



(Amblyoj)sis spelwa) of the caves of Kentucky and Indiana, remarkable 



for having no external eyes. The second is the curious bow -fin (Amia calva), 



the sole living representative of an ancient type. It is a nest-building species, 



