154 
NATURE 
[ Dec. 14, 1882 
The same seems to be nearly the case with a second 
species of He/oderma, H. suspectum of Cope,} a portrait 
of which we give (Fig. 28) from a fine specimen recently 
added to the Zoological Society’s collection. Experiments 
made with this animal have shown that it is sufficiently 
yenomous to kill a small guinea-pig, and, as hereafter 
shown, there is no doubt that its bite inflicts serious 
injury upon any one handling it carelessly. 
The Sonoran Heloderm, or “ Gila Monster,’’ as the 
inhabitants of Arizona call this reptile, is one of the 
largest lizards in North America, and is found all through 
New Mexico, Arizona,and Texas. It inhabits the sandy 
deserts of that arid land, and is said to be a wonderfully 
striking object as it darts about the rocks, and shows its 
brilliant armour of jet black and orange scales. In a 
recent number of the American Naturalist. Dr. Shufeldt 
gives the following account of his experiences with one of 
these ‘‘ monsters” :— 
On the 18th inst , in company of Prof. Gill, of the Insti- 
tution, I examined for the first time Dr. Burr's specimens 
of the Heloderm, then in a cage in the Herpétological 
Room. It was in capital health, and at first I handled it 
with great care, holding it in my left hand, examining 
special parts with my right. At the close of this examina- 
tion I was about to return the fellow to his temporary 
quarters when my left hand slipped slightly, and the now 
highly indignant He/oderma made a dart forward, and 
seized my right thumb in his mouth, inflicting a severe 
lacerated wound, sinking the teeth in his upper maxilla to 
the very bone. He loosed his hold immediately, and I 
replaced him in his cage with far greater haste perhaps 
than I removed him from it. By suction with my mouth 
I drew out a little blood from the wound, but the bleeding 
soon ceased entirely, to be followed in a few moments by 
very severe shooting pains up my arm and down the 
corresponding side. The severity of these pains was so 
unexpected, that added to the nervous shock already ex- 
perienced, and toa rapid swelling of the parts that now 
set in, it caused me to become so faint as to fall, and Dr. 
Gill’s study was reached with no little difficulty. The 
action of the skin was greatly increased and the perspira- 
tion flowed profusely. A small quantity of whiskey was 
administered. This is about a fair statement of the 
immediate symptoms: the same night the pain allowed 
of no rest, although the hand was kept in ice and 
laudanum, but the swelling was confined to this member 
alone, not passing beyond the wrist. Next morning this 
was considerably reduced, and further reduction was 
assisted by the use of a lead water wash. Ina few days 
the wound healed kindly, and in all probability will leave 
no scar; all cther symptoms subsided without treatment 
beyond the wearing, for about forty-eight hours, so much 
of a kid glove as covered the parts involved. After the 
bite our specimen was dull and sluggish, simulating the 
torpidity of the venomous serpent after it has inflicted its 
deadly wound, but it soon resumed its usual action and 
appearance, crawling in rather an awkward manner about 
its cage.”’ 
The specimen of the Sonoran Heloderm in the Zoo- 
logical Society’s Garden’s Reptile House was presented 
to the collection in July last by Sir John Lubbock, Bart., 
F.Z.S., by whom it was received from Mr. G. A. Tread- 
well, of the Central Arizona Mining Company, of Vulture, 
in Arizona territory. There was much difficulty at first 
experienced in getting the reptile to take food. After 
articles of diet of various kinds had been presented 
to it, and successively refused, it was found that small 
hen’s eggs were sufficiently attractive to induce it to break 
its fast. Since then the Heloderm has grown less dainty, 
and has actually condescended to take a small rat, though 
it prefers eggs to any other kind of food. It may be 
remarked that it is difficult to conjecture of what use 
venom can be to an egg-eating lizard. 
Described in. Proc. Acad Sc. Phil., 1869, p 5 
It may be added in conclusion that Dr. Steindachner, 
the well-known herpetologist of Vienna, has recently de- 
scribed and figured a new form of lizard from Borneo,! 
under the name Lanthanotus borneensis, which is nearly 
allied to Heloderma, and has similarly grooved teeth. It 
would be of great interest to know whether the Bornean 
lizard has 1ikewise venomous qualities. 
THE TRANSIT OF VENUS 
yan VERY fair amount of success appears from the 
telegrams to have attended the British expeditions 
for the observation of the late transit of Venus. In 
Jamaica Dr. Copeland and his colleague secured all four 
contacts ; at Barbados Mr. Talmage, though he lost the 
first external contact, observed the other three; we have 
no intelligence yet from the station at Bermuda, occupied 
by Mr. Plummer, nor, of course, from the expedition on 
the west coast of Madagascar. At the Cape the observers 
were similarly favoured by the weather, and we hear of 
very successful observations in New Zealand by Colonel 
Tupman. The only regrettable failure was at Brisbane, 
whither Capt. Morris, R.E., had proceeded, with Mr. C. 
E. Peek. It bad been at first the intention of the Com- 
mittee of the Royal Society to send an expedition to the 
Falkland Islands, but on learning that other countries 
intended to occupy stations in that part of the globe, 
Brisbane was substituted with the view to strengthen the 
Australian stations, and, so to say, assist in counter- 
balancing the great number of observations that might be 
expected in the United States. At the Naval Observatory, 
Washington, all fcur contacts were observed with the 
principal instruments, as also at the Observatory of 
Haverford, near Philadelphia, and in due course we shall 
doubtless hear of many more American successes. 
At the principal observatories in this country little or 
nothing was seen of the transit. Dr. Ball, so far as we 
are aware, was most successful at Dublin ; though he did 
not secure either contact at 2h. 37m. Dublin time he was 
able to commence a series of measures of distance of the 
outer and inner limb of Venus from the sun’s limb, which 
he continued to 3h. 3m. He found by calculation fron 
the time observations that at 2h. 43m. 30s. Dublin mean 
time, the limb of Venus nearest to the sun’s centre was 
188” from the sun’s nearest limb; and also, that at 
3h. om. os. the limb of Venus furthest from the sun’s 
centre was 162” from the adjacent limb of the sun. The 
diameter of Venus resulting from these observations is 64 
seconds, corresponding exactly with that deduced by 
Prof. Auwers from his heliometer “measures at Luxor, 
during the transit of 1874. 
On comparing the times calculated from the elements 
of the transit which have been adopted in NATURE when 
referring to the phenomenon with those telegraphed to 
the Zzmes, as having been noted by two observers at 
Washington, and one at Haverford, the following differ- 
ences between calculation and observation are shown :— 
WASHINGTON. HAVERFORD. 
Frisby. Sampson. 
s. Ss. s. 
Contact I. ... —80 ... +16 —4I 
as UN Ree Ric ert Be) +33 
aa Se oo) et 2T sso —29 
mr IV # 80? SO: cece = 88; +19 
Mr. Neison observed the first external contact at Dur- 
ban at 3h. 54m. 41s. local mean time; if we assume his 
longitude to have been 2h. 3m. 30s. east, the difference 
of the calculated time would be —15s. The view from 
the observatory there was almost perfect. The conditions 
were, cloudless sky, but the air was unsteady. 
Mr. Marth, writing on November 21, places his 
X Denkschr. k. Ak. Wien., xxxviii p. 95 (1878). 
ee 
