DANCING REPTILES

Waipa Post, Volume 32, Issue 1925, 23 October 1926, Page 6

DANCING REPTILES

ZOO'S CHARLESTON PERFORMERS

A number of foot-ilong lizards, known as "bloodsuckers," have arrfived at th e Londan Zools reptile bouse from Ceylon. The popular name of the creature is derived from the fact that when eyeitetl or alarmed the throat becomes mucjh dillated and oC a briilliant scarlet. At the same time the normally brown body changes to a light bllue. The creatures are specially entertaining during courtship, when the mattes give way to their emotions and perform a most curious l dance—a sort of super-Charileston—in front of the/i'r "intefrjiedsv" who appear unmoved by the undignified deiportment of their swaias. Previous attempts to obtain these very voracious lizards for the Zoo were unsuccessful, owing to the failure on the parlt of the consigners in providing them with sufficient food for the journey. On the present occasion they were very carefully looked after by their donor, Mr Hdman Hunt, who fed them datty with fifty cockroaches each from a cockroach farm which accompanied the reptiles. Mr Hunt set sail with 5.000 cockcroaches and had to replenish his stock on arrival at Alexandria. Othetr interesting arrivals at the reptile hous e include a pair of veryrare Central American coral snakes and an aflbina grass snake from near Seven-oaks. These 2ft long coral snafcea are beautifully ornamented with scarlet, yellow and black bands, and exhibit what hag been . caliletl "warning colours 1 ,' 1 for in apitet of their comparatively smaM size they are most dangerous, being juistly regarded as quite ag poisonous as the largest of rattlleßnakeis. After striking at its victim the corail snake does not immediately withdraw like the majority of the members of its tribe, bat hangs on like a bulldog, with the result that the maximum amount of venom enters the wound. The grass snake tts a. pure mSMt-wlhite specimen, with bright red eyes. Th« yellow anfl black -collar typical of the normal form ie represented by a pink patch.