This species appears closely related to the monitor lizard of asia, africa, and australia. Poison is a substance that is secreted by an organisms external covering,i. Their bite is painful, but it isnt particularly dangerous to humans. Colorado river, little colorado river, gila river, bill williams river. Click download or read online button to get gila monsters book now. Their bulky bodies, slowmoving stride, thick forked tongue, and snorting hisses. Gila monster lives in southwestern parts of the united states and northwestern mexico, in deserts such as mojave, sonoran and chihuahuan. Gila monster is one of the two known venomous lizard species the other one is mexican beaded lizard. Gila monster, one of two species of north american venomous lizards in the genus heloderma of the family helodermatidae. Hector the gila monster comes out of his underground home. The gila monster is a strong biter that is hard to shake loose. It is one of only two kinds of lizards that are poisonous to humans. Foothills palo verde fact sheet arizonasonora desert museum. Gila monster facts, diet, characteristics, habitat, venom.
The gila pronounced heeluh is the largest lizard native to the united states. A cute childrens book about the fears of moving to a different part of the. Turtles and gila monsters are very different, which helps us explore factors that might cause this strategy to evolve. Theres been only one death from a gila monster bite since 1930.
Horrible geography series scholastic childrens books which won a 2009 blue peter book award. It has a stocky body with a large head and a short, fat tail. This book uses captivating images and expertly written words to teach children about gila monsters. In this case the boy has preconceived notions of how strange his new city in the west will be compared to his home in the eastern us. The family name helodermatidae means warty skin, referring to the beaded look of the dorsal scales, due to the presence of. Get to know gila monsters by flora brett, paperback. Venom,however,must be injected via fangs or stingers. This one is tricky a gila monster is actually venomous. The gila monster ranges from sea level to 1,500 meters 4,920 feet in altitude. It is a venomous lizard with the sluggish nature and it represents little threat to humans. Gila monsters meet you at the airport by marjorie weinman sharmat, illustrated by byron barton is a funny, clever look at a childs fears reqarding moving. Today i want to write about one of the coolest looking lizards in the world. Gila monsters swallow their food whole but will bite down to break open eggs.
By alina bradford live science contributor 23 march 2017. Learn about gila monsters and enjoy colorful pictures look and learn. Gila monsters download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. Their black bodies are covered in beadlike scales with bright spots, blotches, or bands of pink, orange, or yellow. It is stoutbodied with black and pink blotches or bands. But the lizard is also a sluggish creature, and it hardly ever bites people.
The female digs a hole and lightly covers her 212 eggs that weigh 1. The skin consists of many round, bony scales, a feature that was common amongst the. Readers will discover all the details about these roughskinned reptiles, including their life cycles, diet, habitat, and range. It is true that gila monster, facts and folklore of americas aztec lizard carries errors on the back cover, but there are none in the text. A component of gila monster venom exendin4 has been approved by the fda to be used in a new drug called byetta which helps in the treatment of type2 diabetes.
The gila monster is one of only a few poisonous lizards in the world. The gila monster has the ability to consume large amounts of food at one time. Gila monsters reach the age of maturity between 35 years. Gila monsters have venom in their saliva glands that paralyzes prey. Arizona is full of beautiful natural attractions like the grand canyon and the petrified forest. Gila monster facts for kids 7 awesome facts you didnt. They are slowmoving animals, so a hunting gila monster flicks its tongue to smell prey, then sneaks up on it.
Gila monsters spend most of their lives under the ground. It is found in the southwestern united states and mexico, a range including sonora, arizona, parts of california, nevada, utah, and new mexico. The gila monster egg puzzle frontiers for young minds. The gila monster lizard is named for the gila river in arizona. The gila monster is the only venomous lizard native to the united states. Gila monsters meet you at the airport reading rainbow book sharmat, marjorie.
Michael mozdy is a digital science writer for the natural history museum of utah, a. This book is about friendship and its message is dont be afraid when you move to a. Because the gila monsters prey consists mainly of eggs, small animals, and otherwise helpless prey, the gila monsters venom is thought. Gila monsters meet you at the airport reading rainbow book. This is a wonderful childrens book about scientists in three national parks. These lizards have powerful jaws, so once the reptile bites, prey cant easily escape. The gila monster is named after the gila river basin in which it is found. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. However, the absolute best local source for childrens books about our region. I learned about this because mary kay and tom visited the cat shelter i volunteer at, and they mentioned they had written a book about parks. They are not very big, but are still the largest lizard to be found in the united states, measuring up to 58 cm long less than 2 feet. It belongs to the genus heloderma and the family helodermatidae. This, when combined with the pitfall trap data indicating that hatchlings.
They present not only a complete picture of gila monster. In this book brett has done a good job of finding facts that will be interesting to children, such as how big are gila monsters, what do they eat, what is their life cycle, and whether or not gila monsters are venomous. The gila monster heloderma suspectum is a large heavy bodied lizard. Gila monsters live underground and may choose a rocky gap in the ground or an empty burrow made by another animal. Arizona facts, coloring pages, and more for students and educators from the friendliest gila monster in the grand canyon state. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
I suspect this is the case for brown and carmonys excellent work on gila monsters. The gila monster heloderma suspectum is a species of venomous lizard. Gila monster, heloderma suspectum, one of two species of north american venomous lizards in the genus heloderma of the family helodermatidae. Interesting facts about gila monsters just fun facts. The gila monster can bite quickly and hold on tightly, but it does not kill humans. This toxin is usually stored in specialized glands,in the case of the gila monster,it is stored in. A gila monster can gulp down a third of its body weight in one meal, according to the san diego zoo. Gila monsters are known for their beadlike scales and thick tails. Gila monsters have been observed to flip over while biting the victim, presumably to aid the flow of the venom into the wound. It looks a lot like the mexican beaded lizard, which is its closest relative. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading gila monsters. In fact, authors frequently have little or no say over how their work is packaged. Marjorie weinman sharmat was an american childrens writer. Their black bodies are covered in beadlike scales with bright spots, blotches, or bands of pink, orange, or yellow, which probably warn other animals to stay away.
Indeed, brown and carmony communicate their fascinating subject in a manner that is both readable and accurate. Gila monsters meet you at the airport by marjorie weinman sharmat. Gila monster facts for kids 7 awesome facts you didnt know about gila monsters interesting informa. Because the gila monsters prey consists mainly of eggs, small animals, and otherwise helpless prey, the gila monsters venom is thought to have evolved for defensive rather than for hunting use. They live in the dry, arid regions such as the mojavein fact, the gila monster is the largest lizard in the u. But theres more to these reptiles than their pink, orange, and black bodies. Gila monster is described as a frightening heavybodied lizard found in the deserts of the southwestern united states and northwestern. See the fact file below for more information on the gila monster or alternatively, you can download our 24page gila monster worksheet pack to utilise within the. But we have now found that gila monsters also use this strategy.
Breeding season is in early summer, when males compete by participating in wrestling matches. Gila monster facts, worksheets, habitat, diet, venom for kids. She also separates the facts gila monsters are venomous from the myths their bite is not fatal to humans. Gila monsters can grow 2 feet long, but they only weigh about 5 pounds. Today, utah gila monsters are found in a part of washington county where the beautiful mohave. The gila monster was named for the gila river basin and occurs in the southwestern u. Gila monster photographs by joel sartore at a length of up to two feet and a maximum weight exceeding five pounds, the venomous gila monster pronounced heeluh is the largest lizard native to. The gila monster is the largest lizard in the united states, and one of the few species of venomous lizard in the world.
Bestselling childrens author miles merchant presents fantastic facts about gila monsters. Gila monsters meet you at the airport by marjorie weinman. This is necessary since it may not find food regularly in its desert environment. Venomous desert dweller by carolyn burnhardt and the gila monster had a killer reputation by richard lapidus. Dont worry, you wont have too much trouble getting away if you see one. The tohono oodham and the pima believed that gila monsters possessed a spiritual power capable of causing sickness. Gila monster pronounced heeluh is described as a frightening heavybodied lizard found in the deserts of the southwestern united states and northwestern mexico. Gila monster is the venomous species of lizard native to the southwestern united states and northwestern mexican state of sonora. Many people fear the lizard known as the gila monster. Gila monsters meet you at the airport, by marjorie weinman.