Ronnie Layton age 9, of Safford, AZ
What is a Gila monster?
The Gila monster is a lizard ‑ a gaudy lizard decked out in gaudy wampum. He is never longer than two feet, so he is not a monster. when it comes to size. However, he does have one monstrously bad habit. He has a poisonous bite and, when very provoked he uses it. The Gila monster and his cousin, the Mexican beaded lizard, are the only two poisonous lizards in the world ‑so far as Andy knows.
Arizona is a good place to find a Gila monster. He is named for the Gila river, one of his favorite dwelling places. This river is, as you know, pronounced Hee‑la and our beaded beauty is pronounced the Hee‑la monster. He is often captured and kept in a reptile zoo where people touring through the scenic desert can stop and admire him. It is quite safe to look at him. But Andy does not recommend him as a pet. It takes an expert to handle him without getting hurt.
The beads in his lizard coat are really little bits of bone„ The skin is black and the beads may be yellowish or pink. Usually they circle the whole body in banded garters. Some of the garters may be plains solid color, others may be arranged in blotches. His nose is round and stubby and his short legs are spread out flat from his sides.
The favorite food of the Gila monster is bird's eggs. He gets them from nests on the ground. Sometimes he catches a lizard or a dozing rabbit. The poison is not in that darting tongue. He uses that to smell out his prey. Chances are, he will not poison his dinner.
The poison is kept as a defense weapon. The glands that manufacture it are in the lower jaw. It is injected with a bite though the teeth are far more simple than the complicated fangs of the rattle snake. The venom however, is just as poisonous drop for drop as the rattler's venom.
The Gila monster does not bite people for funs as the rattler seems to do. When left to his slows lazy ways, he will mind his own business, This is why he is what he prefers. But he can be very spry when he wishes, When really provoked, he can and does strike with a flash.
He sinks his teeth into flesh and holds on. They are grooved teethe set close to the poison glands in the jaw, The pressure of the bite sends the venom running up the grooves of the teeth, He relaxes the grip a little and the poison enters the flesh. He holds on as tight and grim as a bulldog. Those simple teeth cannot inject poison like a rattler’s fangs. But they can quell an enemy and teach us to keep out distance.
Apart from his bite, ,the Gila monster is a gentle enough fellow, His favorite state is Arizona though he is found in other parts of the southwest up to, though not into California.