Draco is a genus of agamid lizards that also are known as the Flying Dragons. The ribs and their connecting membrane may be extended to create a wing, the hindlimbs are flattened and wing-like in cross-section, and a small set of flaps on the neck serve as a horizontal stabilizers. Draco are arboreal insectivores. While not capable of powered flight they often obtain lift in the course of their gliding flights. Glides as long as 60 m have been recorded, over which the animal loses only 10 m in height, which is quite some distance, considering that one of these lizards is only around 20 cm long. The only time a flying lizard ventures to the ground is when a female is ready to lay her eggs. She descends the tree she is on and makes a nest hole by forcing her head into the soil. She then lays 2–5 eggs before filling the hole. She guards the eggs for approximately 24 hours, but then leaves and has nothing more to do with her offspring. Linnaeus derived the name of this genus from the Latin term for mythological dragons. The Flying Dragons are native to the southwest tropical forests of Asia and India, including Borneo and the Philippine Islands. In the wild, the Flying Dragon will generally claim a territory. Usually, males will mark two or three trees as their own, and one to three female Flying Dragons will live in each tree. When the male Flying Dragon meets another animal, he may extend his dewlap partially or fully, extend his wings partially or fully, perform a combination of dewlap or wing extension, or bob his body up and down. If he meets a female, he may circle her. Extending the wings and dewlap makes the Flying Dragon appear larger, and he will usually exhibit such behavior if he feels threatened. Flying Dragons eat insects. They catch such prey by sitting under a tree until an insect passes by, and then they consume it. They have short sticky tongues that they use to eat ants and termites.
Posted on: Wed, 20 Nov 2013 21:14:39 +0000
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