. Birds of other lands, reptiles, fishes, jointed animals and lower forms; . inter-locked claws. Another member of the Agama Family which invites brief notice is the so-called YORKDevil, or Mountain-devil, of Western and Central Australia. This lizard is of comparativelysmall size, rarely exceeding 6 or 7 inches in length. Its feeble form and stature, however,are abundantly compensated for by the complex panoplv of spines and prickles bj- whichits head and limbs and body are effectually protected. The natural food of this singularlizard consists exclusively of ants, the small black, evil-smell
. Birds of other lands, reptiles, fishes, jointed animals and lower forms; . inter-locked claws. Another member of the Agama Family which invites brief notice is the so-called YORKDevil, or Mountain-devil, of Western and Central Australia. This lizard is of comparativelysmall size, rarely exceeding 6 or 7 inches in length. Its feeble form and stature, however,are abundantly compensated for by the complex panoplv of spines and prickles bj- whichits head and limbs and body are effectually protected. The natural food of this singularlizard consists exclusively of ants, the small black, evil-smelling species which often provesitself a pest by its invasion of the Australian colonists houses being its prime are picked up one by one by the rapid flash-like protrusion and retraction of thelittle creatures adhesive tongue, and the number of ants which are thus assimilated by aMoloch lizard at a single meal is somewhat astonishing. A number of examples of thisspecies were kept by the writer in Australia, and their gastronomic requirements fully satisfied. Phett by W. ^ /...>. AUSTRALIAN TREE-LIZARD This specie: also runs on its fund legs LIZARDS 171 every day by taking them intotlie garden and placing tliemin communication with aswarming ant track. By care-ful observation it was foundthat no less than from 1,000to 1,500 ants were devouredby each lizard at a singlesitting. The ant-devouringproclivities of these pricklylittle lizards can no doubt beturned to very useful andeffective account in clearingant-infested domiciles, andwere in fact thus utilised bythe writer on more than one
Size: 1425px × 1753px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecad, booksubjectfishes, booksubjectzoology
