PLYING DEAGON. 303 



habited the earth before we have any traces of man's 

 presence upon it. 



One of the Flying Lizards of the olden time was 

 remarkable for having a very long tail. 



FLYING DEAGON (Draco volans). 



At the present day we have no examples of Reptiles 

 which can really fly, though we have some which, like 

 the Flying Squirrels, are able to sweep for some dis- 

 tance through the air. 



These animals are known by the popular name of 

 Flying Dragon, in consequence of their resemblance to 

 the conventional dragon of fables. There are several 

 species of them, all agreeing in form and general 

 habits, and all being quite little creatures, the body 

 only measuring a few inches in length. The tail is 

 very long, very slender, and tapers to a sharp point. 



The structure by which these reptiles are enabled 

 to pass through the air is very remarkable. As the 

 reader may see, by reference to Cut 13, the sides 

 of the body are expanded like those of the flying 

 squirrels, but the expansion is obtained in a different 

 manner. In the flying squirrel, the skin of the sides is 

 expanded with a membrane, which is opened ty 

 stretching out the legs ; but in the Flying Dragon the 

 ribs are employed for the purpose. 



I suppose that the reader knows the difference be- 

 tween the two kinds of ribs. There are the " true " 

 ribs, which occupy the upper part of the chest, and 

 which have their ends resting on the breast-bone; 



