4io 



MANUAL OF ZOOLOGY. 



and this likeness is still further increased by the absence or 

 rudimentary condition of the limbs. The scapular arch and 

 sternum, however, are present in a rudimentary form, and 

 in one genus (Chirotes) there is a pair of short fore-limbs, 

 placed near the head, and furnished with five fingers. Another 

 character separating the Amphisb&nidcz from the true Snakes is 

 the structure of the lower jaw, the rami of which are united in 

 front by a symphysis so as greatly to restrict the gape. The 

 Amphisbanida are all small animals, found chiefly in South 

 America, but also in Africa and Spain. 



The next great family is that of the Scincida, including a 

 number of small Lacertilians, some of which are completely 

 snake-like, whilst others possess two limbs, and others again 

 have the normal two pairs of limbs in a well-developed condi- 

 tion. All possess movable eyelids, and in all the conforma- 

 tion of the lower jaw is Lacertilian, and not Ophidian. Of the 

 snake-like forms of this group, none is more familiarly known 

 than the Blind-worm or Slow-worm (Anguis fragilis, fig. 160), 



Fig. 160. The Blind-worm (Anguis fragilis) after Bell. 



which is found over almost the whole of Europe, in western 

 Asia, and northern Africa, and which is one of the most abun- 

 dant of the British Reptiles. The Blind-worm possesses no 

 external appearance of limbs, though the scapular and pelvic 



