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A desolate crocodile. What lizard is called a desert crocodile

Among the lizard-like reptiles there are interesting representatives: chameleons, lizards, crocodiles and other reptiles. Because of the peculiarities in the classification of reptiles, I really want to understand what lizard is called a desert crocodile. Why this reptile so called?

Desert crocodile is called a huge lizard - a gray monitor. In fact, the land crocodile is not the largest lizard. He gave the palm of primacy to the Komodo lizard. The Gray Varan is a medium-sized reptile, weighing about 4 kg and reaching one and a half meters in length.

Because of the large size of this reptile, they were called a desert crocodile. Although his habits and manner of movement are more similar to the habits of snakes. A large desert crocodile flexes the body in a serpentine way, and for the tactile touch of the air it uses a thin tongue when moving.

Distribution area

The dwelling of the gray lizard is northern Africa, southern Kazakhstan and Central Asia. In addition, he mastered the land spreading to the south-west of Asia, stretching to Pakistan and Balochistan.

For life, a reptile chooses sandy deserts. Those places where the sands are to some extent secured. A large lizard (desert crocodile) loves rocky foothills, tugai forests, cliffs along the coasts of rivers. She builds dwellings in the burrows of all kinds of rodents. Expanding and deepening the tunnel, dug by a gopher or a large gerbil, the monitor arranges its nest there.

It deepens the hole to two and a half meters, and at the end it builds an enlarged chamber (about half a meter in length and twelve centimeters in width). Sometimes the beast is engaged in the independent burial of the burrow. The tunnel in this case reaches a minimum of four meters.

Distinctive features of the desert crocodile

This lizard from other reptiles of her family is distinguished by several characteristic features. The cross section of the tail is round. A gray longitudinal lobe is missing from the gray lizard over the body. The nostrils of the beast, resembling oblique cracks, are close to the eyes, more precisely, to their anterior edges (while in other reptiles they are at the end of the muzzle).

The body background is painted in grayish or reddish-brown hues. On the back and tail in the transverse direction through equal intervals, the brown bands are clearly visible, between which dark specks and specks are randomly scattered.

The habits of the desert crocodile

Predator movements are rapid. When running a desert crocodile develops speeds of up to 120 meters per minute. The beast rushes, spreading his legs, lifting his torso high. The tail does not touch the ground. This pace is enough for a short time, tired, he slows down to such an extent that a man in the light catches up a tired lizard.

The predator climbs on low trees and bushes. For him, it's not a problem to jump from a height of 0.5 meters. Having met a man, he forcefully inflates his body, which is forced to acquire a different shape, broad and flat, makes a loud hiss.

His tail, with a force whipping from right to left and vice versa, does not allow you to grab a reptile. In this case, out of the wide open mouth, the desert crocodile bulges out the tongue and attempts to bite the enemy. The bite of the monitor is far from harmless, it is painfully given. After all, a predator is able to snack a human finger.

Central Asian and Kazakhstani desert crocodiles, climbing deep into the hole, sealing the entrance with an earthen stopper, fall into a hibernation.

Food of the gray lizard

A large lizard, a desert crocodile is a predator. The reptile eats all sorts of animals: insects and scorpions, phalanxes and lizards, snakes (and poisonous ones too), young turtles, birds, rodents, and in the spring also eggs of birds and turtles.

Looking for food, the monitor is forced to perform huge transitions. He, leaving the hole, makes races that reach half a kilometer. The predator route, as a rule, is unchanged. Moving one after the other on the once laid path, the beast is engaged in the examination of colonies of gerbils, tortoiseshocks, bird nests. At the same time he arranges an overnight stay where he was overtaken by twilight.

Reproduction of a large lizard

Sexual maturity in the gray monitor does not occur before the third year of the genus. It is when the reptile reaches a length of 60-80 centimeters. The Central Asian desert crocodile mates in May. And in early June, the female is engaged in laying eggs.

They leave them deep in burrows. In addition, they do not need to bury the masonry deep in the sand. Young animals in the nest are shelled for 8-15, and for mothers of females - up to 23 eggs. Before the release of tiny reptiles, 3-3.5 months pass. The young at the gray monitor appear in September.

Limiting factors

Natural birds of the gray lizard are considered natural enemies. He often turns into a victim of eagles-burial grounds and golden eagles. Dangerous for him and predatory mammals, such as foxes and cane cats.

However, the most serious enemy of the desert crocodile is a man. He exterminated these reptiles because of the durable skin that went into making shoes and haberdashery products. Until a certain time, the production of a large lizard reached 20,000 individuals a year. In some places, the predator was destroyed.

True, the reason for the extermination of large lizards was not only the production of skins, they were killed because of prejudice. The word "varan" means in translation "illness". Muslims who perceived the animal as a threat, destroyed it. Due to the mass extermination, the number of gray lizards reached a critical level. To date, the land crocodile was taken under guard. Hunting for a gray lizard is strictly forbidden.

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