The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-07-23
DISMAL DEATH VALLEY.
4 Desert Inhabited by SeTpcntS, LIZ
ards and Scorpions.

-N%I sleAAA AtAAl 4NEbAAA4A " ANAA "a
Sorts ofUnoanny Bugs, Batraohians
and Foul Things Lizards of I'm
mense Size Like the Monsters Of the
Mesozoio Period Repulsive Rep
tiles, Bats, and Insects Abound.
From the Chicago Times.
Washington, July l5.-The most re
markable collection of North American
reptiles ever got together VIII furnish the
subject Of bulletin soon to be issued by
the department of agriculture They
were obtained from Death valley by the
recent government expedition. The most
striking element of the fauna in that
strange desert region would seem to be
| the big lizards of many species, which
occur in such numbers and in forms SC
strange as to well-nigh counterfeit on a
smaller scale the age Of mesOzoic sauri-
ans. Some of them carry bouquets of
! lovely flowers in their stomachs, while
others can outstrip the fastest race horse
in running, and others yet are clad in
plates Of armor. There is one kind which
actually resembles in miniature a gigan-
tic reptilian type of the chalk-forming
epoch.
! one species is very good to eat. It at
tains length of about one foot, is fat,
@nd when properly prepared tastes like
| Dul1rog. DR.. A. h. Fisher and others of
! the expedition ate several specimens of
| inns KIND, lacking other meat, and found
! them good. The Indians Of that region de-
| pend to considerable extent for food
| upon the creature. which they call chuck
| Walla.o They hook it out from clefts in
! the rocks by means o a fOrlIed stick or a
| bit OF wire. To catch it on the run is out
| OF the question. So active is the animal
! that 1t Is hard to get within gUnshotO of it.
| This remarkable lizard subsists wholly on
| buds and flowers. When cut open its
! stomach IS usually found to contain a
| g0od-slzed bouquet Of yellow cassias, lotus
| blossoms, ana salmou-colOrcd mallOWs.
Not less extraordinary is the s0-called
| grld-r0n-tailed lizard which carries its
| caudal appendage coilcd over its back as
! If it were afraid to put it down on the hot
| sand. This animal inhaDits the open
| desert ana runs with amazing sWiftneSS
1t starts at fun speed and stops with
| equal suddonness, thus eludiug hawks,
| coyotes, and other foes When at rest its
colOrs harmonic SO well with those of the
ground that 1t can hardly be seen. No
horse can keep up with it when it is going
at its best gait. The expedition had a
dOg-a Russian tCrricr-Which thought it
would be fun to chase these lizards At
the tlrst half dozen trials it was much
surprised to see the reptile pass like a
flash out Of the range of vision In fact.
the creature travels with such velocity
that the eye can hardly follow it.
THE GYAINAsTIC LIZARD
During its leisure moments the gridiron-
tail amuses itself by going through a
curious Sort Of gymnastic exercise on the
rocks. Placing itself with its elbows at
the sharpest angle with its body it alter
naCcly lifts and lowers itself on its fore
legs Thus it will continue to "hump"
itself for many minutes together. 1t is
about eight inches long. Insects and
flowers furnish its food Lizards Of big
ger species eat it when they get q chance
Among its enemies is the leopard lizard
which gets its name from It's spots 1t at
| tains a length Of fourteen inches and is
very fierce and greedy. Though chiefly a
vegetable feeder, it also eats horned
tOads, smaller lizards, and even its own
| species. In the stomach of one young
male that was examined two full-grown
lizards of less size were found. A female
that was cut open contained one full
grown horned toad aud remnants of a
specimen of her own kind. These crea-
lures sometimes swallow lizards two
thirds as big as themselves.
Another old species is the whip-tailed
lizard, which is clad in plates of armor
1t lives on insects. Is very slender ana
runs like a streak of creased lightninrr
Its color when alive is stain brown F0r
that reason Or Merriam. who had cb1rC,a
of the expedition. was much surprised at
| a report respecting the animal Which was
made bv DR., StejDeger oftbe Smifbsonian
institution. to whom All the Death vaileV
REPTILES were handed over for evamin6,
ton and classification Dr Ste,naese,
said that the creatures had beantifnl
blue stripes He had seen II onIJ, n ffer
it was preserved in alcohol and tho
spirits for some 1Inlnown reason mo
duced these bands of blue
The lizard that resembles CO ,o,no,.,-
ably a typical saurian of the mesoIoic
period is fourteen inches lone and lives
wholly on vegetable food Fl has heen
named the "dinsos9urIis - on the s;doe
of the mountains which HON IA, +j1o ,roIIo,y
are found oueer scaIv lizards ton incbCs
in length. which lfvein the v1eca traee
twenty or thirty feet above the cronnd
feeding on insects TbouGh they could not
run fast on level 0ronnd their Ie@e bei1cy
very short they iInn about co 90niciliSS :,
thai thev Arc vSrv bar5 70 Catch 4'-o-A-'
One of the mast renorlIahia ror+iIos
known is the horned rattIeenaI(a This
sDceies was coneiderad 1-arv 100 ~, 70
the time of the ey-1odityon Tut ifs 49,
i'm Death valley is Ieeion In foot +baro
are 1nyriais 81 ther1 there N. Sforri.,,,,
shot ono .opd sto,,,,o1 fl,,,,-c,,lj - -