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The Australian lizard that eats ants one at a time
The Thorny Devil or Moloch is a strange Australian desert
lizard easily identified by the many large spines that
entirely cover its fat body and tail. Because it looks so
odd, it was called Moloch, which was another name for the
devil. But the Moloch is completely harmless. It is
slow-moving and when frightened,
it tucks its head between its front legs.
In the harsh desert environment, the Thorny Devil has a most
unusual way of collecting water. Deserts become very cold at
night and when dew forms on the lizard's skin, thousands of
tiny grooves allow the dew to spread quickly over the
lizard's body. When the water reaches its lips, the lizard
sips it easily! It was once thought that the water was
absorbed by the skin, like blotting paper, but the idea has
been discarded because, if the skin could absorb water, it
would equally well lose water, particularly during the hot
part of the day.
The Thorny Devil has curious food habits as well. Its
favourite food is ants and when it locates them, it eats
them one at a time! It sits for hours by a nest, flicking
up one ant at a time with its sticky tongue. Thousands of
ants may go into one meal. The Thorny Devil has been known
to eat about 45 ants a minute.
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