Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-06-26
Alistsllansuas 8sadins.
ODD ANIMALS THAT CAN FLY.
Real Dragons Found In the MaIayan
Archipelago.

Real Dragons Found In the MaIayan
Archipelago.
Zone of the most interesting orders,
and at the same time one Of the most
difficult to fill, that ever received"
said the natural history collector,
was for a collection Of winged or fly
ing animals other than insects or
birds. In filing this order was COM
PEELED to travel over a good part Of
the world.
while in prehistoric times flying
animals, especially reptiles, were nu-
merous, the same is not true Of histor-
ical times The collection when made
was not extensive. but was very inter-
esting.
zone of the queerest flying animals
is the dragon Of the Malayan Archi-
pelago. This reptile, which looks
little like the dragon Of fable, is fitted
with loose folds of skin on its sides
which can be extended outward by
means Of false ribs and thus support
the amman In ltS HBnL.
"I was collecting insects in the for
est one day when I saw a beautiful
butterfly alight upon branch.
Climbing the tree and crawling slowly
out along the branch, was almost
near enough to cast my net around 1t,
when suddenly I heard a whir in the
air and looking up quickly saw drag
on with outstretched wings aiming. as
I thought, straight at me.
"The sight of the remarkable and
forbidding animal so close upon me
unnerved me for a moment and I
nearly fell from the tree. With a
graceful bend he alighted on the
branch close to the butterfly, and be-
fore 1t could take wing had seized and
devoured It.
II had regained my courage by this
time, and as the butterfly was gone
beyond recall I concluded to capture
its captor and threw my collecting net
over the dragons head. Although
quite a fimsy affair, It sufficiently
hampered the animals movements so
that I was enabled to get 1t safely to
the ground, where secured It with
twine until 1 could manufacture a
cage for 1t.
IT also ran across frog able to fly,
the only batrachian that can do so.
The animal had immense feet; spread
out they covered a larger area than
the rest of its body.
Thanks to this parachutelike at
tachment the frog was able to fit from
branch to branch and pounce without
difficulty on the small insects which
formed It's food. 1t was very pretty
little beast, bright green on the back
and orange colored underneath, dotted
with black or blue spots.
"The colugo, or flying lemur, is half
way between the lemurs and the bats.
The flying frame Of the animals is i'm
mense, spreading out like the ribs Of
an umbrella from the neck to the ex-
tremity of the body. Practically the
whole body, with the exeeptfeH-of the,
head, is webbed.
1.-The animal is exceedingly active,
darting to the topmost branches Of
trees, thence launching itself into
space, clearing hundreds of feet in its
flight, passing with ease from tree to
tree, crossing wide streams and even
broad valleys in it's aerial flight 1t Is
a rather difficult object to find as 1t is
nocturnal In its habits, in the daytime
banding together In large numbers un-
der the leafy branches. 1t is found
only in Sumatra, Borneo and MALAGA.
lone of the prettiest of the class Of
flying animals is the flying squirrel
This little animal is fitted with men,
brane reaching from the fore to the
hind limbs and extending to the wrists
Of the limbs.
"They are exceedingly lively and
seem to extract much enjoyment from
their flights, and in places where they
are abundant a dozen or more may
sometimes be seen enjoying themselv-
es together. Bounding lightly into the
air from the swaying summit of a
tall tree, spreading its wings for fly
ing leap, one Of these squirrels glides
smoothly and swiftly on an inclined
air plane for thirty, forty, even fifty
yards, when a movement Of the rud-
derlike tail guides the body upward
for an instant, with half a somersault,
and the creature settles as light as a
feather upon bough or trunk of the
tree for which it set sail.
I'm the forests Of Asia found the
pteromi, another species Of flying
squirrel. By the aid Of the membrane
which Is spread between its fore and
hind feet 1t can jump from one branch
to another without the slightest diff
ficulty, its movements in the course OF
flight being regulated by its cylindri-
cal tail, the same as a ships evolutions
are controlled by its rudder. The an
imal Is exceedingly quick In its move
ments and, like the rest of the flying
squirrels, nocturnal in its habits.
1.-The scale tailed squirrels, as they
are commonly called. can aptly be de-
scribed as flying squirrels, with climb
ing irons; the under side of the tail
being furnished for some distance
from the root with a series Of large,
horny scales, which, when pressed
against the trunk of tree. serve the
same purpose as climbing irons.
'The parachute Is similar to that Of
the true flying squirrel, but is attach
ed to the fore limbs at the elbow In
stead Of the wrist, and Is therefore
less extensive. The animal averages
about fourteen inches in length, is Of
a bright reddish color, and Is found
only in Africa.
II found a very interesting little
flying animal in Siberia, where 1t, is
called polatouche. This animal looks
considerably like the flying squirrel
and has similar habits. 1t Is not more
than eight or ten inches long, lives in
pine or birch forests. and can clear
from twenty to twenty-five yards at
bound.
ION the ground its movements are
slow and awkward, owing to the loose
folds Of skin which impede 1t, but
among the trees 1t Is wonderfully
quick in flying from branch to branch.
1t is an exceedingly scarce animal, and
l had long search before securing a
specimen.
THE belide or flying phalanger,
which is found only in Australia, Is
remarkable, not only for the large size
Of its parachute, but also for the alb
dominal pouch Of the female, in which
like the opossum, she carries her
young. This little creature also uses
Its tail as sort Of rudder in its flight
through the air. 1t Is much priced
by the natives as food.