40 
FLYING DRAGON. 
transverse dusky undulations 01 bats, wlnle tlie 
wings are very elegantly spotted, more especially 
towards the broadest part, with differently shaped 
patches of black, deep-brown, and white : the bor- 
der of the wings is also white; and the whole under 
surface of the animal is of a very pale or whitish 
brown colour.” 
These reptiles inhabit Asia, Africa, and America, 
where they are seen flying from tree to tree, and 
feeding on ants, flies, and other insects. They 
are said to make a noise with their wings, which 
may be readily heard as they fly from one tree to 
another, and that they are able to support them- 
selves in the air during a flight of thirty paces. 
Le Barbinais, a French voyager, quoted by La Ce- 
pede, has evidently described this species, which, 
he says, is about a foot long, with four legs like those 
of common lizards. He observes that the head is 
flat, having an opening in the middle, through 
which a needle might be passed ; that the wings 
are very thin ; and that the neck is surrounded by 
a sort of ruff, not unlike the wattles on the throat 
of a cock. He met with them in abundance in a 
small island near Java, where he tells us they flew 
from tree to tree like locusts. He killed one of 
them, and was anxious to preserve it for the sake 
of its beautiful colours, but the heat of the climate 
prevented him. 
Several impositions have been passed upon the 
public, of different animals stuffed in a peculiar 
manner, so as to represent what those who have 
