10 TRANSACTIONS LIVERPOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



rugosus) is twelve or eighteen inches long, and has large 

 scales like miniature fir cones on its head and hack. 

 There are two poisonous lizards, known as Gila monsters 

 (Heloderma horridum and a second H. suspectum), they 

 certainly seem to have the power of killing small 

 mammals or birds with their salivary secretion. 



In appearance the common Gila monster is a dusky 

 colour with broad yellowish bars across its back, and the 

 scales are tuberculated. 



Many of these creatures become quite tame and 

 learn to know their attendant, and will watch for feeding 

 time. 



Tortoises present very little difficulties in the way 

 of keeping. Land species will usually feed readily on 

 green vegetables or fruit; the African genus Cinixys 

 has only eaten bananas with me. Needless to say, they 

 require an even heat. 



The water tortoises are among the most interesting 

 of this group ; they are all carnivorous, with a very few 

 exceptions. 



The members of the American genus Chrysemys are 

 prettily marked when young, many of them having a 

 remarkable colour scheme, in which red, yellow, brown 

 or green predominates, and the general effect is very 

 striking. The best known is probably C. picta, which 

 has an olive carapace with yellowish or reddish stripes 

 outlining the shields of the back. Each marginal 

 shield has a circular red line on it, and the same colour 

 is seen on the under sides of these shields. The plastron 

 is yellow. They are to be had from the dealers, ranging 

 from one to three inches long, and will take small pieces 

 of meat or worms. Water living species have flat webbed 

 feet and swim well. 



A remarkable animal is the Alligator terrapin, a 



