Page 31 - One Million Things: Animal Life - The Incredible Visual Guide
P. 31

Flying gecko


          1   CROCODILIANS                    4   NONVENOMOUS SNAKES             7   WORM LIZARDS
          These large, ferocious predators include   Many snakes do not use venom.   These wormlike reptiles live in hotter
          crocodiles and alligators. They wait in   Constrictors, such as corn snakes and   parts of the world. Most have no limbs,
          rivers and lakes, then use their powerful   pythons, grab their quarry using sharp   and all burrow underground, pushing
          jaws and sharp teeth to grab and drown   teeth, then wrap themselves around it   through soil or sand using their   Skin along the sides of
          unwary animals. Their eyes and nostrils   and squeeze ever tighter until the   blunt-shaped heads. Worm lizards have   the body spreads out
          are set on top of the head so they can   animal suffocates. Then, like all snakes,   fairly simple eyes and feed on insects   to allow lizard to glide
          see and breathe while in the water.  they swallow their victim whole.  and worms that they find by touch.
                                                                                                                  Puff adder
                                                                                      Brown and yellow markings
          2   LIZARDS                         5   TURTLES AND TORTOISES               camouflage the puff adder
                                                                                          in its grassland habitat
          More than half of the 8,000 reptile species   The bodies of these reptiles are
          are lizards. Most are agile, fast-moving   protected by a hard shell. Turtles
          hunters. They include geckos, skinks,   live in the sea and fresh water, while
                      chameleons, slow worms,   tortoises live on land. All lay their
                          the Komodo          eggs on land, with marine species
                             dragon, and the   migrating across oceans to do so.
                              venomous Gila   They lack teeth but their jaws have
                               monster.       sharp edges to cut food.


                                                                                    Common
          3   VENOMOUS                        6   TUATARAS                           iguana
          SNAKES                              These burrowing reptiles are found
          All snakes are carnivorous, and     on islands off New Zealand, the sole
          around one-tenth, including adders,   survivors of an ancient group related
          cobras, and rattlesnakes, immobilize   to snakes and lizards. They are
          prey by injecting venom, or poison,   nocturnal and can live for
          through special teeth called fangs.       more than 100 years.



           Plumed basilisk lizard

                                                          Forked tongue
                                                         “tastes” chemical
                                                        particles in the air
                                                                                           Skink



        Thorny devil                  Sharp, protective             Gila monster
                                      spines collect
                                      water at night                                                                    Green tree python


                                                                                        As the snake
                                                                                       strikes, hollow          Rattlesnake
                                                                                         fangs swing
                                                                                          forward to
                          Slowworm
                                                                                        inject venom



                                  Venom ejected from
                                  cobra’s mouth can
                                  blind an attacker
                                                                     Tuatara



                                                                                                   Madagascar day gecko
         Red spitting cobra


                                                               6
                                                                                        Long tongue
                                                                                         used to lick
                                                                   Worm lizard  7     lidless eye clean                                 29




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