TllE BLIND-WORM. 



297 



It is veiy common in some parts of Australia, for instance, in Western Australia, particularly 

 in the neighbourhood cf King George Sound, but they do not inhabit the east coast ; at all events 

 they are not found near Sydney. 



It is generally known as the "Sleeping Lizard," and it frequents open, sandy plains, and 

 may be captured in large numbers on a hot summer's day. 



The number of young produced seldom exceeds four. 



The large Australian Lizards, with broad crushing spheroidal crowns to their teeth instead of 

 sharp points, belonging to the genus Cyclodus, are allied to the last-mentioned kinds, and have 

 many curious structural arrangements in common. They are the Great Cyclodus from Australia, 

 which breeds in. the Zoological Gardens of London, and the Black-and-yellow Cyclodus, from Tas- 

 mania.* 



GENUS ANGUIS. THE BLIND-WOEM, OR SLOW- WORM, t 



The late Mr. Thomas Bell, in his interesting book on the " British Reptiles," states that the 

 Blind- worm, or Slow- worm, is found in almost every part of Europe, excepting the extreme north, 



BLIND-WORM. 



and is capable of enduring a much colder climate than most other reptiles, even that of 

 Britain. It is found in Russia, Poland, Denmark. Sweden, and Scotland, as well as throughout 

 the more temperate parts of Europe as far as the South of France and Italy, but it has not been 

 seen in Africa. It is worm-like in shape, long, and almost of equal thickness throughout, but 

 it tapers slightly at the tail end. The teeth are very small, and are slightly hooked. The tail is 

 not more than half the length of the body in some individuals, but it is longer in others. It may 

 reach from ten to fourteen inches in length, and the head measures half an inch or more. The 

 general colour is brownish-grey with a silvery glance, and there is a dark line down the back. The 

 history of one is given in White's " Selborne : " " A Blind-worm that I kept alive for some weeks 

 would, when touched, turn and bite, although not sharply. Its bite was not sufficient to draw blood, 

 but it always retained its hold until released. It drank sparingly cf milk, raising the head when 

 drinking. It feeds upon the little white shig so common in fields and gardens, eating six or seven 

 of them one after the other, but it did not eat every day. It invariably took them in one position. 

 Elevating its head slowly above its victim, it would suddenly seize the slug by the middle, in 

 the same way that a ferret or dog will generally take a rat by the loins. It would then hold it thus 

 sometimes for more than a minute, when it would pass its prey through its jaws, and swallow the slug 

 head foremost. It refused the larger slugs, and would not touch young frogs or mice. The Blind- worm 

 avoided the water, and was a remarkably fine one, measm-ing fifteen inches in length." They are very 

 timid when first caught, and they contract their muscles so forcibly that they become stiff, and it is 

 when in this rigid condition that the body is easily broken in two by a blow, or by an attempt to 

 bend it. Hence the name fragile, or fragilis. The females are ovo-viviparous, thei'e being sorne- 

 * Cyclodus gigas and Cyclodus nigro-luteus. f Anguis fragilis. 



