284 Animal Life 
The lizards foreign to the United States of which I give illustrations here I have 
not enjoyed the opportunities to study in their natural haunts, but in many respects 
these have been given us by others who have visited their habitats. Like nearly all the 
larger skinks, the Cunningham’s I found to be a very gentle, quiet, in fact somewhat 
sluggish reptile that exhibited no fear upon being handled, and no disposition to bite the 
person who held it fast. I made several photographic negatives of the reptile, the most 
spirited one being reproduced in the present communication. 
The true skinks all belong to a large family of ground 
lizards that have a wide distribution, being found not 
only in Hurope and Asia, but also throughout Australia, 
Africa, and America. In their relationships they are 
more or less s closely connected with other groups 
of ground 
no limbs at all 
The well-known 
it in EHneland, 
wall the Cripple 
latter. Such a 
meet with in 
where it is 
Glass- Snake 
tralis). It is 
great brittleness 
part of the 
ated posterior 
One of the 
groups of the 
United States 
ever, the genus 
which over 
have been de- 
a few subspecies. I 
collected a number of 
America, and especially 
ful Blue-Tailed Skink (#. 
atus),and others. In early spring 
quently be discovered by turning 
flat stones in the woods, when they 
concealed among the dead leaves of 
lizards noted for thei having either 
or else only rudimentary ones. 
Slow Worm, or, as they call 
the Blind Worm, or in Corn- 
Worm, is one of these 
limbless lizard we also 
the United States, 
known as the 
(Ophisawrus ven- 
noted for the 
of its tail or that 
creature situ- 
to the vent. 
best-known 
typical lmbed 
skinks is, how- 
Humeces, of 
twenty species 
scribed, with 
have personally 
the skinks in 
the very beauti- 
quinqueline- 
they may fre- 
over old logs or 
will be found 
the previous 
year, or such other débris as accumulates ‘ in such places. 
With Cope I have noticed the tendency of the adult 
scincoid reptiles to lose thei colour with advancing age, 
and of the two Cunningham skinks before me 1 from Australia 
PENCE LIZARD. . . 
the smaller one is darker than the larger, though SNe no brighter im 
the matter of glossiness. I have noted this also to be the case in Heloderma, the 
big Arizona species of lizard, where the black and the orange in. the younger 
specimens were very much darker than in those far advanced in age. 
Many of the limbless relatives of the skinks are subterranean in their habits, making 
it difficult to study them in nature; and as a matter of fact, in so far as the American 
forms are concerned, we have a vast deal yet to learn in regard to their geographical 
distribution, their mating and breeding habits, and the foods upon which they subsist. 
