366 



ZOOLOGY 



SECT. 



habitually in fresh water. The Flying Lizards {Dram, Fig. 1008) 

 are arboreal, and make use of their wings — or, to speak more accu- 

 rately, aeroplane or parachute — to enable them to take short flights 

 from branch to branch. Chlamydosaurus and Amphibolurus are 

 exceptional in frequently running on the hind-feet, with the fore- 

 feet entirely elevated from the ground. A tolerably high tempera- 

 ture is essential for the maintenance of the vital activities of 

 Lizards, low temperatures bringing on an inert condition, which 

 usually passes during the coldest part of the year into a state 

 of suspended animation or hibernation. The food of Lizards is 





f"l"*3*^ 





Fin. lOOS.— Draco volans, x|. (From the Cambridge Natural History.) 



entirely of an animal nature. The smaller kinds prey on Insects 

 of all kinds, and on Worms. Ghamseleons, also, feed on Insects, 

 which they capture by darting out the extensile tongue covered 

 with a viscid secretion; Other Lizards supplement their insect 

 diet, when opportunity offers, with small Reptiles of various kinds, 

 Frogs and Newts, small Birds and their eggs, and small Mammals, 

 such as Mice and the like. The larger kinds, such as the Monitors 

 and Iguanas, prey exclusively on other Vertebrates ; some, on 

 occasion, are carrion-feeders. Most Lizards lay eggs enclosed in a 

 tough calcified shell. These they simply bury in the earth, leaving 

 them to be hatched by the heat of the sun. Some, however, as 



