LIZARDS. 89 



themselves for the present dearth of infidel heads by slicing off those of the unbelieving 

 Lizards. 



The Stellio lives almost entirely on the various insects that flit about the sand, and 

 its quick rapid movements are needed to secure its prey. A kind of cosmetic^ was 

 anciently made from this reptile, and even at the present day, the Turks employ it in 

 the offices of the toilet. 



The color of the Stellio is olive-green above, clouded with black, and the under parts 

 are yellow, sometimes tinged with green. There is no crest upon the nape of the neck, 

 and the scales of the tail are rather large, and arranged in distinct whorls. There is no 

 decided throat-pouch, but the skin of the throat is loose and plaited into a single cross 

 fold towards its base. The body is rather flattened, and there is a longitudinal plait on 

 each side. The tail is round and conical. 



IN the restricted genus AGAMA a word, by the way, which is not derived from any 

 classical source, but is simply the popular name among the natives of Jamaica the 



EGYPTIAN MASTIQURE. Umpnstlx splalpes. STELLIO OR HARDIM. StcUlo Cordyllam. 



scales of the back are flat and keeled, and the third and fourth toes are nearly equal in 

 length. The throat is marked with one longitudinal fold, and one or sometimes two 

 transverse folds towards its base. Upon the sides of the neck and near the ears are 

 curious groups of spiny scales. There is a slight crest along the back, the body is rather 

 flattened, and the tail is long, tapering, and is cpvered with whorls of boldly projecting 

 scales. 



In a very old work on natural history, it is stated that the Lizards which have their 

 tails thus armed with sharp spiny scales, make use of them in a rather singular fashion. 

 They feed, according to these old writers, on cattle and other animals, and judging that 

 from their small size they cannot bring an ox or a cow home after they have killed it, 

 they jump on its back, cling tightly there with their feet, and by judicious lashing of the 

 sharp tail, guide the animal to their home, where they give the fatal bite. 



The SPINOSE AGAMA (Agama colonorum} is a well-known example of this genus, 

 residing in Northern Africa, and plentiful in Egypt. The color of this reptile is brown ; 



