oh good, just burping doesn't sound too bad :-)

Posted by Lyn on June 09, 2002 at 09:23:24:

In Reply to: Re: multiple Desert Horned Lizard questions... posted by Lester G. Milroy III on June 08, 2002 at 09:46:31:

No wonder it didn't happen when they were on crickets waiting for my first ant order. They weren't really great at catching the crickets, so they'd get one here and one there. With the ants, they just run around like little vacuum cleaners sucking them down. I feel better knowing they are just burping and that they are ok. I'll take another look for the ears now that I know better where to look. Thanks so much!

Hello Lyn. Yes they have external ears. There is an opening just behind the jaw hing, and below the parietal horn shield. They hear and sence ground vibration. The three scales are just part of the makeup of the HL. The one scale in the center is the "3rd eye" which is the translucent scale that allows light to be senced by the pineal gland in the brain. This aids in thermoregualtion. The "gagging" reflex you mention is like a burp. They gulp in air as they capture an ant and the excess air has to be expelled. If you eat too fast, you gulp in air, and a good burp allows expulsion of that excess air. All of the HLs species I have worked with exhibit this behavior. Lester G. Milroy III

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: No wonder it didn't happen when they were on crickets waiting for my first ant order. They weren't really great at catching the crickets, so they'd get one here and one there. With the ants, they just run around like little vacuum cleaners sucking them down. I feel better knowing they are just burping and that they are ok. I'll take another look for the ears now that I know better where to look. Thanks so much! : Hello Lyn. Yes they have external ears. There is an opening just behind the jaw hing, and below the parietal horn shield. They hear and sence ground vibration. The three scales are just part of the makeup of the HL. The one scale in the center is the "3rd eye" which is the translucent scale that allows light to be senced by the pineal gland in the brain. This aids in thermoregualtion. The "gagging" reflex you mention is like a burp. They gulp in air as they capture an ant and the excess air has to be expelled. If you eat too fast, you gulp in air, and a good burp allows expulsion of that excess air. All of the HLs species I have worked with exhibit this behavior. Lester G. Milroy III

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