Sampl of Covr and Slctd Pags Th following sampl matrial is for prviw purposs only. (Scroll down to s additional pags.) School and district prsonnl may sav or download this PDF to on computr and may print on copy for prviw purposs only. Th downloadd PDF may also b installd and prviwd on on ipad or othr tablt dvic (us on an ipad may rquir downloading th fr Adob Radr app from ituns). Furthr copying or duplication is not prmittd without approval of Trasur Bay, Inc. This book may b availabl in multipl ditions, including Paprback, Hardcovr, and PDF E-Book. For mor information, call 1-800-476-6416, mail us at CustomrSrvic@TrasurBayBooks.com or visit us onlin at www.trasurbaybooks.com
Rptils and Amphibians
Rptils and Amphibians Rptils and Amphibians English Edition Copyright 2009 by Trasur Bay, Inc. English Edition translatd by Elizabth Bll and ditd by Sindy McKay Original dition Copyright Nathan/VUEF 2002 Original Edition: Rptils t amphibins Spcial thanks to Nd McAllistr, hrptologist, for his advic and rviw of th information in this book. Th Call of th Sa by Christoph Lambrt, illustrations by Gaëtan Dorémus Non-fiction txt by Jan Hrvé, illustrations by Yvs Baujard, Marc Lizano, Nathali Lacost, Olivir Nadl, Jan-Mari Poissnot, Michaël Wlpy. Cartoon spot illustrations by Bruno Salamon. Ancdots and tst by Bnoît Dahan. Activity by Sabin Lamy, with illustrations by Bruno Salamon and photographs by Frédéric Hanotau. Puzzl gam by Danil Gurrir. Tabl of Contnts Story: Th Call of th Sa pag 2 Photography Crdits Sunst/FLPA; Jacana/Photo Rsarchrs/D. M. Schlsr; Hmra Tchnologis Inc. ( 1997-2001); Bios/M. Gunthr; Soug Prrin/Sapics/Joël Halioua Editorial Agncy; and Jacana/Ingo Arndt. All rights rsrvd Publishd by Trasur Bay, Inc. 40 Sir Francis Drak Boulvard San Anslmo, CA 94960 USA PRINTED IN SINGAPORE Library of Congrss Catalog Card Numbr: 2008932257 Hardcovr ISBN-13: 978-1-60115-213-8 Paprback ISBN-13: 978-1-60115-214-5 Visit us onlin at: www.halfandhalfbooks.com Facts: Yiks! Frogs, Crocodils, Snaks and Mor! Rptils and Amphibians 16 Big Familis 18 What is an Amphibian? 20 What is a Rptil? 22 Cold-bloodd Animals 24 Daily Lif 26 Sing, Haring, Touching 28 Th Turtl or th Egg 30 Family Lif of th Crocodil 32 What s on th Mnu 34 Looking for Pry 36 Protction From Prdators 38 Strang Lizards 40 Th Magic Chamlon 43 Puzzl 44 Tricky Manuvrs 46 Incrdibl, but Tru! 48 Puzzl Answrs 49 Did You Know? 50 Activity 52
In th bginning... I opn my ys for th first tim and thr, far abov m, is th black sky studdd with stars. I nd to mov up toward th stars and out to th surf that I har crashing in th distanc. How do I know this? I m not sur xactly... It s as if all th xprinc of arlir gnrations of turtls is packd insid my had, lik air in a balloon. Th balloon pops, and thousands of tiny nuggts of knowldg showr my brain. 2 Th Call of th Sa Story by Christoph Lambrt Illustratd by Gaëtan Dorémus I guss this is what is calld instinct. All around m, othr ggs ar hatching. Shlls crack and split, rvaling th tooth-lik horn at th tip of ach baby s snout. My nstmats and I climb on top of on anothr. Thr ar dozns and dozns of us and w all hav th sam goal: survival. I am a sa turtl; a hawksbill turtl, to b prcis. I hav just bn born this vry momnt. I will nvr know my mothr. Sh laid hr ggs on this bach last spring, and it is now arly autumn. Sh dug a dp hol in th sand in which to lay ovr 100 ggs, thn camouflagd th nst wll, using twigs, branchs, and sand. This hlpd to hid th ggs from th badgrs, foxs, and wasls that might hav atn all th ggs bfor thy wr hatchd.
Now that I hav safly mrgd from my gg, I know that th most important job of my lif lis bfor m. I must mak my way out of this nst and into th opn sa. My journy bgins with a struggl to climb up out of th hol whr I was born. Flippr-lgs, dsignd for swimming, not walking, scrabbl on th ground and th sand. My nst-mats and I crawl ovr ach othr. It is a trribl, trrifying crush and th wakst fall back down into th dp nst to di. With grat difficulty, using my wbbd claws, I pull myslf up th slop. A sandslid snds thr turtls bhind m back to th bottom. How many of us will mak it to th sa, I wondr? Th urg to surviv is powrful. It givs m th strngth to kp fighting my way to th top of th nst. Across th sand As I nar th top, th smll of th salt sa air is strongr and th sound of th wavs is loudr. I must rach th ocan. Though I hav nvr sn it, I know it is whr I blong. I fl it. Instinct, rmmbr? With a gigantic ffort, I hoist myslf out of th hol, and thr it is bfor m: th vast xpans of watr that draws m lik a magnt. Th stars and moon arrflctd on its surfac. Wavs brak and vanish on th shor with a gntl lapping motion. 4 5
It is bautiful. I can t tar my ys away from this univrs that is so nw, yt strangly familiar. It sms to strtch out its arms to wlcom m. Now it is a rac to th ocan, a marathon of baby turtls. Our instincts tll us w must tak advantag of th cool night air. If w don t hurry, th hot sun of th day will sap our strngth and w will fail in our mission to rach th sa. Unfortunatly, our flipprs ar mad to mov through watr, not through sand. Our progrss is slow. Hungry Sa Birds Suddnly, w har a pircing cry: Aaaaaaahh! Hug sa birds ar diving down on us. Dath is falling from th sky! I s th long sharp bak of on bird snap shut on th turtl bsid m. H is swpt off into th sky. Anothr bird swoops down. Thn anothr and anothr! Th birds ar fast, so thr is no chanc of running away. In fact, thr is nothing I can do but hop that I will not b th nxt victim. Far spurs a nw nrgy in m. My flipprs shuffl frantically on th sand. I imagin myslf in th watr, fr to swim. Dlicious alga awaits thr for m to at. Th cool salt watr will soon b my hom! 6 7
All around m th trribl attacks continu. Yt I undrstand that th sa birds ar only following thir instincts as wll. Ths birds must at. Young turtls ar thir food. This is Natur. Still, my instinct drivs m to b on who will surviv. A crab tris to block my way. I slip btwn its lgs. Its lthal chopprs clack abov my had lik castants. Click-clackclick! Th prsistnt crab lungs to th lft, to th right, but I am on stp ahad. Attack of th Crabs I look ahad of m and s that th ocan is not far now. Prhaps I will mak it aftr all! Thr ft... two ft... on foot... But wait! A horribl nw dangr now appars: dozns of hard-shlld craturs, armd with trrifying pincrs. Thy run sidways, with grat spd, on thir manyjointd lgs. Thy ar crabs. Th dradful basts sprad out among us. Thir pincrs crush th soft shlls of svral tiny turtls around m. 8
Rptils and Amphibians Scintists bliv that amphibians (am fib ē ns) wr among th first animals to com on land. Thy volvd from fish around 400 million yars ago. Th first rptils wr dscndants of amphibians. Thy appard around 320 million yars ago. That s about 100 million yars bfor dinosaurs appard. Amphibians and rptils still thriv today, long aftr th xtinction of dinosaurs. Thr ar about 12,000 spcis of amphibians and rptils. All ar vrtbrats (vur t brāts), which mans thy hav a spinal column in thir back. Thy ar also all cold-bloodd, which mans thy must us thir nvironmnt to warm or cool thir bodis. Th skin of most amphibians is smooth and moist, whil that of rptils is dry and covrd with scals. Most amphibians lay ggs in watr. Most rptils lay ggs on land, but som rptils dvlop in ggs that rmain within th mothr s body until thy hatch. Most amphibians undrgo mtamorphosis (mt môr f sis), changing thir form as thy dvlop into adults. Howvr, as rptils grow, thy shd thir skin, which is calld molting. 16 17
Thr ar about 5,000 spcis of amphibians and 7,000 spcis of rptils. Thy ar oftn classifid by thir physical apparanc, whr thy liv, or th way thy brath, at, or rproduc. Scintists still do not all agr on th classification and numbr of spcis in th various ordrs of ths animals. Big Familis AMPHIBIANS In thir first stag of dvlopmnt, amphibian larva (lär vē) liv in watr, but adults liv on land. Thy usually hav two pairs of limbs. Thir skin is smooth and moist, and thy can brath both through thir skin and through thir lungs. Thy may b insctivorous (in sk tiv r s insct ating) or carnivorous (kär niv r s flsh ating.) Thy ar dividd into thr ORDERS: About 400 spcis 3 Caudata or urodl (yoor dēl ) Salamandrs and nwts hav an longatd body and can crawl. nwt 2 Apoda Thy hav no lgs. Thy liv undrground. 1 Anura Frogs and toads hav a larg had, long back lgs and no tail. Thir larva ar born without limbs. Ovr 150 spcis Ovr 4,000 spcis crapauds axolotl Europan cav salamandr salamandr cacilian (s sil y n) (Ths ar not arthworms or snaks.) frog toad Galapagos tortois REPTILES Thy volvd from amphibians, but thy can crawl or slithr on th ground and liv in th opn air. Thy brath through thir lungs. Thir skin is dry and scaly. Thy ar dividd into 4 ORDERS: 2 Chlonians (k lō n ē n s) or Tstudins 1 spcis 1 Rhynchocphalia (rin kō s fā lē n) or Tuatara sphnodon has only on spcis, th sphnodon (sfē n dän ). It is carnivorous and oviparous (ō vip r s), star tortois Turtls and tortoiss hav bodis nclosd in a bony shll covrd with scals mad of horn. Thy liv in th ocan, in rivrs, and on land. Thy at both mat and plants, so thy ar carnivorous and hrbivorous (h r biv r s) Thy ar also oviparous. sa turtl which mans it lays ggs. 250 spcis 21-23 spcis 3 Crocodilians Thir bodis hav bony plats covrd with scals. Thy ar oviparous and lay ggs with hard shlls that th young must brak. Thy ar carnivorous. Thr ar 3 familis: Crocodils, hav a thick nck and triangular snout, liv in tropical aras. Alligators, hav a wid snout, liv in mild climats. Gavials, hav a vry long snout, liv in India. About 3,800 spcis 4 Squamata Covrd with scals, thy includ Srpnts (snaks) and Sauria (lizards). flying dragon Sauria Almost all lizards hav four wll-dvlopd lgs that lift thir bodis off th ground. Most ar oviparous, som ovoviparous. Ovr 2,800 spcis Srpnts Snaks hav longatd bodis and no lgs. Thy Gckos can walk upsid down. ar carnivorous. Thy ar oviparous or ovoviparous.* Thr ar many typs of snaks, including boas, pythons, viprs and cobras. grn python frilld lizard Most lizards ar insctivors, but som ar carnivors (flying dragon, collard lizard, Komodo dragon, slow worm...) or hrbivors. 18 19 *Ovoviparous ( ō vō vip r s): young dvlop in ggs that rmain insid th mothr s body until thy hatch and ar thn born liv. Chamlons ar insctivors. snak monitor lizard cobra vipr slow worm
Mtamorphosis of th frog Th frog s ggs float on th surfac of th watr. Th tadpol is born with a long tail for swimming and with gills for brathing undr watr. What Is an Amphibian? Amphibians lad doubl livs. Most of thm ar born and undrgo mtamorphosis in watr, but thy thn liv mostly on land as adults. On xampl is th frog. Th skin of most amphibians is smooth and moist. Somtims it has glands that produc a sticky coating; othr glands may produc poison. Kidny Thr ar svral diffrnt ways amphibians can brath: through th gills or lungs through th skin if it is moist through th mouth, which th animal fills with air (anura) or watr (urodl). Lungs Most frogs cannot turn thir hads from sid to sid, but thy can rais and lowr thir had. Brain All amphibians hav ylids. Anura s ys hav thr. Littl by littl, th gills ar rplacd by lungs and th back lgs bgin to appar. At 12 wks, th ys bgin to protrud and th mouth widns. Th tail disappars and th front lgs dvlop. Unlik th skltons of salamandrs, most frogs hav a short spinal column, vry short ribs, and no tail. Anura, including frogs, hav squat bodis. Th bodis of urodls, which includs salamandrs, ar longatd, allowing thm to crawl. Apoda hav nithr lgs nor fins. Intstin Stomach Hart Mal anura hav on or svral vocal sacs bnath th nck or tmpls. This is whr th croaking sound is mad. Whn th back lgs ar wll formd, th frog jumps onto land. Its lungs fill with air. Frogs ar oviparous and abandon thir ggs in th watr. Most salamandrs ar ovoviparous: th ggs dvlop and hatch in th body of th mothr and th babis ar born liv. Th shap and lngth of anura s tos vary from on spcis to anothr. It dpnds on whthr thy walk, swim, or jump. Th front ft hav 4 tos, th back ft hav 5. 20 21
What Is a Rptil? Excpt for tortoiss, all rptils hav tth.th fangs of vnomous snaks can injct poison. Tortoiss hav hornd baks. In a snak s long body, th organs ar tubular in shap (hart, lung). Thy ar arrangd on aftr th othr or ar rducd in siz (lft lung). Th snak nvr blinks its ys. Its y is covrd with a clar y cap that is shd whn th snak molts. With or without lgs, all rptils ar abl to slithr or crawl. On typ of rptil is a rattlsnak. Livr Lacking ardrums, snaks ar daf, but thy captur vibrations from th ground that ar transmittd to th innr ar. Th snak has lastic jaws and spcial bons, allowing it to swallow pry that may b largr than th snak. Stomach Lft lung Hart Oviparous rptils (such as turtls and crocodils) bury thir ggs in a warm pit in th ground. Crtain pythons and cobras incubat thm by covring thm with thir bodis. Ovoviparous lizards and snaks incubat th ggs insid thir bodis. Intstin Turtls, crocodils and lizards mov on four lgs, xcpt for th slow worm, whos limbs hav disappard. Snaks hav no limbs. Kidny Whn a rattlsnak shaks its tail, it maks a rattling sound that may frightn off its nmis. Rptils hav skin covrd with scals. A tortois s body is protctd by a bony shll covrd with hornd plats. Crocodilians hav bony plats on thir bodis. Th numbr of vrtbra a rptil has can vary a lot: at last 200 for a snak, 26 for a crocodil, 20 for a turtl. How a royal python molts Whn it fls its skin is too tight, th python molts to gt rid of th top layr of skin. It may molt svral tims a yar dpnding on its siz and ag. Th full molting procss lasts 6 to 10 days. First th snak s skin grows soft. Its ys bcom vild with a bluish whit covring. Th snak cannot s as wll. It bcoms irritabl. Th molting itslf taks 1 to 2 hours. It bgins at th had. Th old skin braks off from th lips and ys, thn turns insid out lik a glov all along th body to th nd of th tail. 22 23
Coldbloodd Animals Unlik mammals and birds, amphibians and rptils ar cold-bloodd animals. Thy rgulat thir tmpratur by taking advantag of thir nvironmnt. z z z 1 At night, th dsrt is frigid. Th lizard buris itslf in a lair that is 60 F. Its body tmpratur is 62.5 F. ding ding ding 2 In th arly morning, th tmpratur is cool. Th lizard warms itslf in th sun on a rock. Its tmpratur can ris to 86 F in lss than half an hour. A day in th lif of a lizard A lizard sks th right tmpratur by changing plac and postur. It warms up by xposing itslf to th sun to gathr nrgy so it can hunt. But it is quick to sk shad whn th tmpratur gts too high: this kps its body from ovrhating. yum yum 3 At mid-morning, th sun shins brightly. Th lizard s dark skin absorbs th solar hat. Its tmpratur stabilizs at 95 F. It hunts inscts and fls from prdators. 4 At noon, th tmpratur nars 120 F. Th lizard stays in th shad. yum Okay, nough fun, I m going to bd This is no lif, just workday, subway, hit th hay... 5 In th aftrnoon, whn th tmpratur drops, it loungs in th sun or on warm rocks to maintain its 95 F body hat. It digsts during this tim.... tomorrow I m going to Tahiti! 6 Whn th sun gos down, th lizard rturns to its lair. Th squirming lizard To walk on burning hot sand, th lizard dos acrobatics. It lifts up its lft front and right rar ft at th sam tim, allowing thm to cool off. Thn it walks a littl mor and pauss again to cool th othr two ft. Controlling its tmpratur An iguana s skin changs color according to th tmpratur. In th arly morning and lat aftrnoon its skin is dark, to absorb th hat. In th hottr tims of day, its skin is light, rflcting th sun s rays. Rcharging its battris To b activ, rptils must hav nrgy. On way to gt nrgy is to warm thmslvs by basking in th sun. 24 25
Daily Lif Popl oftn fl rpulsd by amphibians. Yt thy ar animals with amazing abilitis! How do frogs orint thmslvs? A group of frogs was accustomd to laying ggs in a crtain pond. On day, workrs filld it in and cratd a road. Entirly nw smlls sprad through th ara. Yt th following yar, th amphibians cam right back to th sam spot... bcaus thy orint thmslvs by th sun, not by scnt. Bwar: poison! Poison dart frogs manufactur strong vnom in tiny glands on thir backs. Th poison is not fatal to th touch. Howvr, if th poison gts into a body through th mouth or a wound, th victim can b quickly paralyzd and di. South Amrican nativs usd th poison in frogs lik ths to poison thir darts. Othr amphibians also produc poisons. Th Europan spottd salamandr scrts poison into th mouth of a prdator, so th animal will rlas it. Th poison in ths animals is th way thy protct thmslvs. Prdators larn to lav thm alon! 5 With its adhsiv tos, it can grip th stalks of plants or climb trs. Rcord jumps Not all frogs jump. Som swim, othrs walk, soar, or climb trs. Frogs that liv in trs ar imprssiv acrobats. Tr frogs that ar only 1.2 inchs long can somtims jump two ft. Rockt frogs can jump up to 15 ft! 1 At rst, th frog is in a sitting position, its lgs bnt. Th back lgs rar up and th tos hlp it push off from th ground. 2 It xtnds its back lgs to gain spd grat crstd nwt 3 It can catch an insct in midflight. Th cannibal nwt Th grat crstd nwt is quit th carnivor. It dvours small shllfish, worms, snails, tadpols, and inscts. Whn it is starving, this voracious littl animal can vn bcom a cannibal: it ats othr nwts and vn its own larva. 4 It lands softly on its ft. 26 27
Sing, Haring, Touching Dpnding on thir nds and whr thy liv, rptils us thir snss in many ways. Th mighty crocodil Th crocodil floats nar th surfac of th rivr. Laving only th top of its skull abov watr, it smlls and hars vrything around it. Nostrils ar locatd at th vry nd of its snout to dtct odors. It lis in wait to surpris its pry thn grabs and drowns th pry in th watr. Snaks hav no ars. How dos a snak larn about th world without ars? It is vry snsitiv to vibrations in th ground as it slithrs along. With a long forkd tongu that it flicks out, it can sns th odors of plants and animals. Its larg ys, covrd with a transparnt protctiv film, ar always on th watch. Hunting with infrard Lik many snaks, th pit vipr is abl to hunt at night. In total darknss, it can s using littl cavitis situatd on ach sid of its had btwn th ys and nostrils. Ths cavitis can dtct th hat or infrard radiation of a warmbloodd rodnt. As soon as th pry movs, th vipr attacks and injcts its vnom. Somtims th rodnt scaps, but th snak will soon find it again by th hat th rodnt givs off. 28 29
Th Turtl or th Egg Which coms first? It is always th sam: combat btwn rivals, attracting a fmal, and gg-laying. Hrmann s tortoiss in th hat of combat Eggs-actly! In April, fmal ringd snaks tak thir first sunbath. Thy display thir colord ncklacs in th company of svral mals. On of thm grows bold and approachs a fmal. In May, th mals go away. In July, th fmals lay soft ggs, stuck togthr, bnath th grass. Thy hatch in Sptmbr. Shll-to-shll combat Two mal turtls fac off in front of th fmal, who stays on th sidlins. Thy rush at ach othr with th strngth of a tank. Thir shlls strik and scrap ach othr. Aftr two hours of intns fighting, on of thm loss his balanc. Th othr taks advantag of this and turns him ovr on his back, lgs in th air. Th victor lavs with th fmal h has won. Th losr sarchs for a prop to turn himslf back ovr again. Th lathrback sa turtl Th lathrback sa turtl gos ashor to lay hr ggs. Sh digs a hol in th sand, whr sh lays 60 to 100 ggs. Whn sh has finishd, sh is xhaustd. Sh covrs th ggs to hid thm. Thn sh rturns to th sa, swping th sand with hr back ft to covr any trac of hr prsnc so that prdators do not know whr th ggs ar. 30 31
Swallowing an gg in its shll Th gg-atr snak (Dasypltis) ingsts hug ggs, shll and all. Thanks to its lastic jaws, it avoids braking thm. Whn it has compltly swallowd th gg, a bony saw in its sophagus* slics th gg apart. Th contnts of th gg ar rlasd into th stomach. Dlicious! What s on th Mnu Snaks and crocodils ar carnivors. Lizards ar insctivors, but som ar also carnivors or hrbivors (hur b vors). Most land turtls at plants, whil sa turtls liv on crabs, jllyfish, fish, and alga. A swt tooth for jllyfish Whn th lathrback sa turtl fills its lungs with air, it can div narly 1,000 ft dp in th sa. Thr it fasts on jllyfish. It can hold its brath for 20 to 30 minuts. Aftr it coms back to th surfac to brath, it plungs back down to th dpths. Som sa turtls hav mistakn a plastic bag for a jllyfish and strangld to dath. Th rptil thn spits out th pics of shll. Esophagus: (i sof g s) Digstiv canal lading from th mouth to th stomach. Thirst qunching cactus In th dry sason, a giant tortois might qunch its thirst by drinking th watr insid big cactus plants. It tars off a pic, which falls to th ground. Th tortois braks it opn and swallows th pulp insid. In th rainy sason, th tortois drinks its fill from ponds. Boa ats boa Th boa constrictor taks up a post in a tr to watch for pry. This powrful snak from th tropics wraps its body around th mammal and crushs it bfor ating it. Its mouth strtchs to swallow th animal, aliv or dad. Whn it has fully ingstd th pry, its scals sprad apart. Its body rlaxs. As th boa digsts, it rmains motionlss for wks or months. Anothr typ of boa is th anaconda. If two anaconda snaks grab hold of th sam pry, th largr snak may simply swallow th smallr snak. Boa dvouring a gazll 34 35
Protction From Prdators Turtls, snaks, lizards... diffrnt rptils hav diffrnt ways of scaping thir nmis. A protctiv shll Th turtl has a shll that surrounds and protcts it. Th shll is formd of bony plats that ar joind bnath its blly. Whn dangr appars, th turtl rtracts its four lgs, had, and short tail into this hard, solid shltr. Young turtls, howvr, ar vry vulnrabl bcaus thir shlls ar still soft. Hiss Snaks hiss in diffrnt ways. Th sand vipr rubs its coars scals togthr and producs a vibrating raspy sound. Whn th rattlsnak shaks its tail vigorously, it can b hard ovr 30 ft away. Th bull snak has a vry loud hiss. A flap within its larynx* vibrats, amplifying th hiss whn it xpls air. *Larynx :(lar ingks) Part of th innr throat that contains th vocal chords. Rattlsnak Sand vipr Bull snak Attackd by a raccoon, a Blanding s turtl huddls in its shll. Los a tail Whn a bird of pry gos aftr a skink in th Australian dsrt, th rptil will brak off its own tail to scap. Th tail falls off, but grows back fairly quickly. Th scond tail is shortr and lightr in color than th first. Play dad Whn a prdator approachs, a hognos snak will squirm, strtch, hiss, and pant to try to scar it off. But if th nmy prsists, th hognos changs stratgy. It plays dad, going stiff and motionlss with its mouth opn and its tongu hanging out. It sms to stop brathing. It vn mits a smll of dath. How mbarrassing! Wow! ahh, a It s growing nic nw tail back... 38 39
Strang Lizards Thr ar about 3,800 lizard spcis on th plant. Som of thm ar rally amazing! Walk on watr Th basilisk livs in th marshlands of Cntral Amrica. It swims, divs, or holds prfctly still in th middl of th swamp to avoid a prdator. But it is also abl to run across th surfac of th watr, on two lgs and with tos splayd, as adptly as on land. It can run across th watr at narly 7 1/2 mils pr hour, fast nough to kp it from sinking. Which nd is which?? Th worm lizard looks lik a blind snak. This odd rptil sms to hav a had at both nds, but on is rally a tail. A lizard without lgs, it movs backward as asily as forward, lik an arthworm. With its snout it digs undrground tunnls as its hom. Scar your nmis Th frilld lizard, which livs in Australia and Nw Zaland, avrags 33 inchs in lngth. In its nck it hids a fold of skin that can li flat or flar out into a wid collar. It flips it out suddnly, opns its mouth wid, and hisss to intimidat and driv off an attackr. It s all a bluff! Dspit all th fanfar, th lizard has no ral dfnss. Littl dinosaur Moloch horridus, nicknamd th thorny dvil, livs in th dsrt of cntral Australia. This frightning lizard has hug thorns on its had, body, and limbs. Whn thratnd, it buris its fac btwn its lgs. All th attackr ss ar th bristling horns on its had. Although it looks lik a scary dinosaur, th moloch is only about 8 inchs long and ats only ants all yar round. 40 41
It changs color Th skin of a chamlon can chang color. Many scintists bliv that for som typs of chamlons, what thy ar fling can affct th color of thir skin. Thy bcom grn if thy ar contnt, gray if thy ar in pain, or black if thy ar angry. Whn a chamlon's skin changs to brown, it can warm up bttr by taking in sun rays. Som of th colors, such as brown or grn, can also hlp th chamlon blnd into th colors of trs and hlp it hid from prdators. It maks a big imprssion Whn an nmy appars, th chamlon puffs up its body. Its lungs and svral inflatabl sacs in its blly fill with air. Thn it opns its mouth and rocks back and forth thratningly. Whn th dangr has passd, it dflats. Th Magic Chamlon To surviv in a hostil world, th chamlon has svral ways to mak up for its waknsss. It sticks out its tongu! At rst, a chamlon s tongu folds up lik an accordion. Whn it ss a grasshoppr, its muscls activat with dazzling spd. Th lastic tongu strtchs to bcom as long as its body. With prfct accuracy, it capturs th pry on its sticky tip. Th lizard draws th insct back to its mouth, whr its gummy lips grab and dvour it. To mov about, th chamlon clings tightly with its ft and movs thm vry carfully, on at a tim. Its fiv tos act lik plirs to grip a branch. Its tail locks onto th branch and wraps around it to stady th lizard. It crosss its ys! Th chamlon is a strang huntr. Vry patint, it waits for hours to spot pry. Its ys can mov indpndntly of ach othr and ar ringd with a larg protctiv ylid. 1 With on y, it xplors th trrain and zros in on approaching inscts. With th othr, it watchs th spot whr th insct will land. It attacks inscts only whn thy ar still. 1 2 3 2 3 Th two ys convrg on its pry: its tongu darts out. 42 44 43
Tricky Manuvrs Snaks that liv in undrbrush hav intricat, intrwovn dsigns. In vry aspct of lif, rptils show thir shrwdnss. Som of th things thy do... Prtnd to b fmal Whn th mal gartr snak of Canada mrgs from ight months of hibrnation, it disguiss itslf as a fmal. How? It givs off th phromons* of th opposit sx. Th trickstr attracts a swarm of othr mals (a hundrd or so) who mrgd bfor h did. Thy form a tming ball around him, which warms him and hlps him to rviv. This also protcts th still drowsy snak from prdatory birds. Fly lik a dragon Flying dragons (Draco volans) hav wings formd by ribs and mmbrans that xtnd out from ach sid of thir body. At rst, ths mmbrans li alongsid th body. Whn in dangr, th dragon opns thm lik a parachut and drops away. Thy can glid 65 ft from tr to tr. Whn thy land, thir wings fold back in. Thos that liv in trs ar oftn slim and willowy, with grn or brown colors. Us camouflag To blnd in with its surroundings, snaks war camouflag. Som harmlss spcis scap from thir nmis bcaus thy look lik vnomous snaks... Thos that liv in sandy dsrts ar yllow, big, or light brown. *Phromon: (fr mōn) Substanc scrtd by an animal that causs crtain ractions in anothr animal of th sam spcis. 46 47