Cindy Pelch, age 9, of McAllen, Texas, for her question:

IS THE GILA MONSTER POISONOUS?

The Gila monster is a large lizard that lives in deserts of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It is indeed poisonous. This reptile and the Mexican beaded lizard are the only poisonous lizards known.

The name is pronounced "HEE la" monster.

The Gila monster grows to be about 18 inches long. It has a stout body, a broad and blunt head and a stumpy tail. The head and body have areas of black or brown and of orange or salmon. Fat is stored in the animals thick tail. It can live on this stored up fat for months without eating.

Gila monsters come out at night, or at other cool times. They eat bird and reptile eggs and small animals. The female buries her eggs where they will be hatched by the heat of the sun.

The Gila monster has a powerful poison but a poor way of using it. The poison, called venom, is secreted along the grooves at the base of the animal's lower jaw. When the lizard bites a victim, these grooves carry venom into the holes or wounds made by the teeth.