ii4 



LIZARDS. 



A larger and more remarkable species is the one represented in 



the illustration on p. 113 (Ptychozoum homalocephalum), which 



is the sole member of a genus characterised by the presence of an expansion of 



skin along the sides of the bod}-, continued as lobes on the tail, as well as by the 



toes being completely webbed, and the inner one devoid of a claw. Attaining a 



length of nearly 8 inches, this species has a distinctly ringed tail ; its colour above 



being greyish or reddish brown, marked with undulating dark brown transverse 



bands, and a dark streak extending from the eye to the first of the bands on 



the back. This gecko is an inhabitant of Java, Sumatra, Borneo, and the Malay 



Peninsula. 



The last member of the family we shall specially notice is the 

 Wall-Gecko. . r j 



wall-gecko (Tarentola mauritanica), which is the Mediterranean 



representative of a small genus ranging from the countries bordering the Mediter- 

 ranean to West Africa, and including one West Indian species. The genus is 

 readily recognised by all the toes being dilated, and only the third and fourth 

 furnished with claws. This species varies from rather less than 5 to somewhat 

 more than 6 inches in length, of which one-half is formed by the tail. The sides 

 of the neck and body, as well as the upper surface of the limbs, are ornamented 

 with conical tubercles ; the back carries seven or nine longitudinal rows of larger 

 and strongly-keeled tubercles ; and on the anterior half of the tail the ornamenta- 

 tion takes the form of knobs with backwardly directed spines. The general colour 

 of the upper-parts is greyish brown, with more or less distinct lighter and darker 

 marblings, while a well-marked dark streak passes on each side of the head through 

 the eye. 



With the exception of a certain number of species, the geckos, as 

 already said, are nocturnal in their habits ; and many are remarkable 

 for uttering shrill cries, probably produced by striking the tongue against the 

 palate, which in some cases are compared to the syllables yecko, checko, or tolci, and 

 in others to the monosyllable tok. A South African sand-gecko is at times stated 

 to occur in such numbers, and to produce such a din by its cry, as to render a 

 sojourn in the neighbourhood well-nigh insupportable. As regards their habitat, 

 geckos are very variable, some frequenting arid deserts, where they, in somu 

 instances, burrow in the sand ; others frequent wooded regions, living either among 

 low bushes or on trees, and concealing themselves during the day beneath stones 

 or the bark of the stems ; others again are found among rocks ; while a third 

 group has elected to live among human dwellings, where some of its members have 

 become as fearless and confiding as domesticated animals. Of the arboreal species, 

 the frilled gecko is peculiar in having a parachute-like expansion of skin, which 

 is used after the manner of that of the flying squirrels in aiding its owner to take 

 long leaps from bough to bough. When at rest, the parachute is kept close to the 

 sides of the body by the aid of its intrinsic muscles ; and it is stated that this 

 species, like several others, has the power of changing its colour according to the 

 hue of the object in which it is resting. The species frequenting houses may be 

 divided into those which resort to the interior, and those which are content with 

 the outside. Of the latter, Sir J. E. Tennent writes that in Ceylon, " as soon as 

 evening arrives, geckos are to be seen in every house in keen and crafty pursuit, of 



