. The naturalist in Australia. Natural history. LIZARDS. 93 reticulations upon a dark, almost black ground, while in E. depremi, the spots or reticulations are black, or very dark, upon a pale pearl-grey ground. As a rule, colour charactei^s are held by systematic biologists to be of but little value; vrhen, however, such colour distinction is found to obtain without exception throughout an extensive series of individuals, colour marking, and more especially the pattern of its distribution, undoubtedly becomes a reliable element in specific diagnosis. These superficially very closely allied sp
. The naturalist in Australia. Natural history. LIZARDS. 93 reticulations upon a dark, almost black ground, while in E. depremi, the spots or reticulations are black, or very dark, upon a pale pearl-grey ground. As a rule, colour charactei^s are held by systematic biologists to be of but little value; vrhen, however, such colour distinction is found to obtain without exception throughout an extensive series of individuals, colour marking, and more especially the pattern of its distribution, undoubtedly becomes a reliable element in specific diagnosis. These superficially very closely allied species are found to difl^er materi- ally in their more minute structural organisation, notably in the. SPIXE-TAILED LIZARD, Egeviua depreHm. two-thirds natural size. sculpturing of their scales. The contour of the body of the smaller variety is also, as its tech- nical name im- plies, very much more depressed. In captivity these two species of Egernia manifested a much more shy and retiring disposition than the several Uzards previously described. At all times, unless feeding, they displayed the most active desire to take advantage of the nearest covert that presented itself, and, under such conditions, much patience had to be exercised in securing the several photographic representations of the species that are reproduced in these pages. The food question with these lizards was, on their first acquisition, a troublesome one. They utterly refused to take of their own accord, animal food of any kind which, judging from the carnivorous habits of an allied species, apparently E. Kingii, also abundant in the Al^rolhos Islands, it was presumed they would appreciate. In order to keep them alive, small pieces of meat were daily administered them by gentle persuasion, and these, on being placed well within their mouths, were contentedly swallowed. Later on, the chance placing of a fragment of vegetable material within reach of their perambulations elicited the fact that they were essent
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