The Mexican Beaded Lizard is one of the two known dangerous snakes in the Western Hemisphere. It can grow up to six feet in length and is often encountered from coast to coast. They live in tropical rain forests, swamps, and near creeks. A number of people have reported a sting during their lifetimes, but there is no medical information available on this event.
Mexican beaded lizards belong to the Gila species. The only two recognized venomous lizards in the world, they are also close cousins to the Gila monster. They’re dark brown to black in color with brownish red or orange spots on their tail. Their skin is generally made up of beads-like osteoderms which contain large pieces of bone covered by keratin, which is a protein found in nails and hair. This provides them with their hard outer shell. Their legs appear to be segmented as compared to other reptiles, probably because of their enlarged hind limbs.
The Mexican Beaded lizard is a nocturnal hunter. During nighttime, they forage around houses and monitor lighting patterns to determine their next meal. They eat mostly rats and birds, but occasionally take small lizards, chameleons, and frogs. They are fairly passive when it comes to fighting back, but their short bodies give them excellent access to nearby hiding places. Many of them are found living in mexico’s moist jungles and floodplains. They feed primarily on small animals and invertebrates like bugs, chinchillas, spiders, snails, and leeches.
Like most lizards in the genus Voleonius, the Mexican Beaded lizard has four digits in its tail, which are divided into two cloven flaps by a spine. It has a long, prehensile lower jaw which allows it to bite powerfully. To protect this body part, it wears a thick lower jaw armor that covers most of its mouth, except for a few sensitive teeth near its head. Its powerful jaws can even tear through heavy armor-plated shirts.
The Mexican Beaded lizard also possesses several appendages. It has a pair of exceptionally long legs, just short of the tail, which end in deformed claw pads. The short limbs are used in climbing and walking on burrows, rocks, and ledges. Their claws have been described as having “razor-like” edges. Other notable appendages include an armored stomach (plans) that produces an acid to digest meat, a deformed tongue that is used to explore food, and an additional small organ that secretes milk.
Both of these snakes have relatively few teeth, unlike most snakes, which have a number of different types of teeth for cutting and grinding meat. The Mexican Bearded lizard has one set of incisors, which are located in the rear of the mouth along the base of the tongue. Its two ventricle teeth do not bear teeth, but grow larger ones that are used to extend the neck. It has a single set of incisors in each of its two species of choice.
While the Mexican Beaded lizard is relatively small (less than seven inches in length), it is powerful and can inflict moderate damage to most people if they get bitten. Most people who get bit usually only suffer mild symptoms, since most venomous snakes have poisonous saliva. However, some people who have been bitten actually develop a serious condition called venom fever, which can cause serious illness and even death in some cases. Some cases have resulted in complete paralysis and even death in humans.
Recently, researchers have discovered that the Mexican Beaded lizard is actually the most common species of its genus in the Western Hemisphere. It is commonly seen from the southern United States all the way down to Central America, and it is likely that it is also present in parts of Mexico and Central America. These lizards tend to live in low-lying areas, near springs and other damp, moist habitats, and they feed on a variety of insects, including mosquitoes, ants, spiders, cockroaches, moths, and beetles. They generally stay close to their water source, although they will venture into swampy areas to hunt prey, like slugs, snakes, and birds.
