The Hope pioneer., 1922-12-21
POISON GAS FROG
CAPTURED alive
Others That Bark Like Dogs
and squeaI Like Pigs
Brought to New York.
GET 200 LIVING SPECIMENS
Strange Reptiles Captured in santo
Domingo by DR.. and Mrs. G. Kings
10y for American Museum
Of Natural History.

OF natural f1lStoFy.
New York.-SpecimenS Of many
curious reptiles. including huge tree
frog which releases poison gas from
its skin and another giant frog which
barks and growls like dog and
squeals like pig have been added
to the collection of the American
Museum of History by DR.. and Mrs.
G. Kingley Noble, who have just re-
turned from a three months scientific
expedition across the Island of Santo
Domingo.
Forty of the biggest lizards in the
world, which bear the closest resem-
blance of any living. creatures to the
giants Of the dinosaur period, were
captured and are now living in cages
in hot room in the museum.
The poison-gas frog attains weight
IT about ten pounds. Its feet have
devices like the suckers of an oc
topus, which enable it to climb YER
tically the sides of trees. Its habitat
is full of large snakes which would
probably have extinguished this ex-
traordinary frog long ago, except for
the frogs development Of the novel
device Of perspiring corrosive milky
liquid which blisters like touch Of
diluted carbolic acid and fills the air
with a binding vapor and an intoler-
able odor. This frog is less effective
at a long range than skunk. but
would otherwise make well-bal-
anced adversary in match In their
particular specialties.
Has a Curious Biography.
In addition to an interesting per-
sonality, this frog has curious biog-
lives its early life attached to rocks
like an abalone or muscle and
spends it's adult period in trees. Max
ing curious sound, the female comes
down from the trees in egg season
and deposits small objects among
stones by the eoge Of the stream
These are eggs. They absorb water
and swiftly grow to the size OF I;
marble, one laying of eggs soon beins
as large as the frog which laid it.
Hatched out as tadpoles, the young
sters wriggle to the rocks and swift,
mountain streams, attach themselves
to bowdlers in the heart of the cur.
rent and hang on till they have at
tained frogs estate. when they set out
for the trees and walk up the sides
like flies. These frogs would prob
ably interest conuoisseurs who have
acquired taste for frogs legs. The.
have drumsticks like turkeys.
These and other frogs and animal
were the subjects of intimate photo
graphs showing their family life. theii
methods of eating. sleeping and collr:
ing. The photographs were taken q
night with fasl.gun Automuli
nashlight pictures have been take
before of lions and other large an
mails, but this is the first tne tn
portraits of strange frogs. have hce,
dona in this manner
The other curious frog was II
smaller kind, which live In decn
junsles, where they would get los.
and never find their friends except fo,
the tremendous power of their voices
They climb to the tops of trees anG
bark furiously $" rs TO he heard at
great distances. The first barking
frog that was caught did not wrigglc
and try to escape like the ordinary
frog, but startled his captors by open
nr hiS mouth Will, .pd cuunol;nu I;l.o
pig. This frog lays its eggs on the
ground and they hatch out fully
formed frogs instead OF tadpoles.
Lizard Hunted With Dogs.
The big lizard. OF which only one
specimen was ever known in this colln-
try. was hunted with dogs on the
shores of salt lake lfiO feet below
sea level. They reach Il length OF
five feet and large weight. They
have enormous heads. powerful jaws.
three rhinoceros-Iike horns, a wide
gaping mouth with a deep indigo in
terror, a red tongue and little pink
horns like bits Of coal set all over the
face The skin is like thick rich silk.
NitH Il pSOulIAui OttC-SiSCll SlItcIl.
The teeth, luckily. are short. Doc
tor Noble was bitten in the hand by
one, but was not badly injured. If
they possessed teeth to match their
Jaws. his hand would have been am
putated. The big ones were an over
match for the dogs and could only be
shot and brought back dead. The
dogs, however, could catch and hold
the smaller ones until the members
of the expedition came up to help.
This big lizard is called the rhi-
loceros iguana. being named after the
horns. They have crest of spines
which runs from the back of the neck
to the fail. In motion their powerful
muscles move impressively under the
loose fancy-sik covering of skin.
A total Of 200 living specimens and
large numbers Oe skins and specimens
in jars of alcohol were brought back.
The expedition was financed by the
Angelo HeilrriD Fund and the mute.
rials will be installed in the museums