2i2 CHARACTERS OF VERTEBRATE ANIMALS 



majority of existing reptiles are confined to land or fresh water, 

 though some of the extinct groups were exclusively marine. The 

 Estuarine Crocodile is one of the fiercest and most dreaded 

 species, and at the same time probably the largest, for a speci- 

 men has been recorded as having the great length of 33 feet. 

 It ranges from the east of India to South China, North Australia, 

 and the Solomon and Fiji Islands. 



American Crocodiles have slender snouts, a feature possessed 

 in an exaggerated form by a West African Crocodile (C. 

 cataphractus). 



Garials form a small group of crocodilian reptiles, distin- 

 guished by extremely slender snouts, and jaws armed with a 

 large number of comparatively small teeth, all fairly equal in 

 size and arranged with greater regularity than in the other 

 forms. These special modifications convert the jaws into a very 

 perfect fish-catching arrangement, which is paralleled in some 

 of the aquatic Mammals (Cetacea). The first and fourth lower 

 teeth bite into grooves above, and, as is but natural, the united 

 part of the lower jaw is extremely long. The feet are more 

 completely webbed than in other crocodilians, and both fore- and 

 hind-limbs have a posterior ragged fringe. There are only two 

 existing genera, both confined to the south of Asia. 



Schlegel's Garial (Rhynchosuchus Schlegeli) is found in 

 Borneo, and may attain the length of 14 feet. The better- 

 known Gangetic Garial (Garialis Gangetica) is confined to the 

 Ganges, Indus, Brahmaputra, and some smaller Indian rivers. 

 It is of larger size than the Bornean Garial (20 feet), and the 

 snout is longer and more slender. By the natives they are 

 regarded as sacred. 



Order 2. TOOTHLESS REPTILES (Chelonia) 



This order includes the Turtles and Tortoises, toothless 

 Reptiles provided with a remarkable defensive exoskeleton. 



The most familiar member of the group is the small Grecian 

 Tortoise (Testudo Grceca), common as a pet in this country, and 

 indigenous to the south of Europe (fig. 134). The short broad 

 trunk is enclosed in a strongly arched shell, forming a sort of 

 box with an opening in front into which the head, neck, and 

 fore -limbs can be withdrawn, and a similar opening behind for 

 the benefit of the hind-limbs and stumpy tail. The head is 



