Januari 07, 2017
(dramatic percussion music) - i'm coyote peterson, and i'm about to go underneath a prickly pear cactus to have a face-to-face encounter with the only venomous lizard in the united states. i absolutely love my job. all right, this is gonna get interesting. (cougar roars) (fast-paced safari music)
(curious instrumental music) this morning, we're in tuscon, arizona, headed out into the heartland of gila monster territory, the sonoran desert. we have been notified by a local rancher that one of these rare lizards has taken up residence on a hillside of his property. this time of day, gila monsters will emerge from their burrows
to bask in the morning sun. what i want to do is stay hunkered down and watch from a distance with binoculars. if this elusive reptile does indeed reveal itself, i will have an excellent opportunity to encounter this notorious desert dweller. to do that, i willquickly position myself between the lizard and its burrow, and carefully capture it with my bare hands.
this will be the best way for me to ensure the safety of the animal while i show you some of its most unique qualities. (apprehensive tones) i see him. he's out, and he's underneath a prickly pear cactus, which is gonna make it a little more challenging place.
all right, he's moving a little bit. this is gonna be our opprotunity and a chance to go up this one. mark, follow me. here is right there. see him? right there. look, youcan see the top of him. you see his tongues sticking out? - [mark] yeah. - right there.
look at his head right in the sunlight. what i want to do is carefully work my way behind the lizard try to create a barrierbetween it and its den. all right, he's turningback towards his den. okay, i'm just gonna go. all right, here we go. there he is. all right, i got the denbehind me at this point. what i'm gonna do is safely and gently grab a hold of him
right behind his head so that i don't risk getting bit. all right, ready? - [mark] yup. - okay, got it. yes, look at him! wow, totally worth the steak out. that is the gila monster, the only venomous lizardin the united states. these reptiles, typically, are not very aggressive.
it's not very often that peopleare bit by gila monsters. they say that only a fool who mishandles a gila monster ever receives a bite. what's really interesting about the tongue of the gila monster is that it's forked just like a snake. they run that over what's called the jacobson's organ at the top of the skull in the roof of the mouth. that's like this gila monster'slittle personal computer that's bringing in all sorts of chemicals
from potential prey,predators, and its environment. the venom glands on this lizard are in the lower jaw. there's scales on the outside, and below that are four venom glands. when they actually find something that they're going to capture, bite, and envenomate, those teeth that theyhave are not like fangs. they're these long, sharp, monster-looking teeth,
and when they grab onto something, they gnaw and gnaw. that gnawing works thevenom into their saliva, and then into their victim. the scientific name of the gila monster, heloderma means "nail-studded skin." this lizard is absolutely built for this desert terrain. all these little bumps running down his back are actually little osteoderms.
osteoderms are little tinypieces of bone covered in scale. this guy pretty much has a bullet-proof vest on his back. gila monsters are incredibly intelligent reptiles. they will often follow the trail of a mammal and go right back to its burrow. if that mammal has babies in the burrow, he's got lunch. if it doesn't have any babies, they will actually remember where that burrow is at, and return several times
until there's somethingin there to eat. then of course, they have their meal. if you're unfortunate enoughto be bitten by a gila monster, it's gonna be one of themost painful exeriences you've ever gone through. the only way to getthis reptile off of you is to actually submerge it into a bucket of water. once it lets go, remember, this is venomous, and you're gonna wanna get yourself to the hospital
as soon as possible. the venom's not as potent as a rattle snake, but i tell you what, they say it's about a painful as lava coursing through your veins. wow, what an increadible encounter with the only venomous lizard that lives in the united states, one of my favorites,
but i want to know what your favorite lizards are. leave me your list in the comments section below. i'm coyote peterson. be brave. stay wild. we'll see you on the next adventure. all right, i'm gonna putthis guy up in the shade so he can cool off back in his burrow, and we're gonna go get some ice cream. it's scorching out here.
if you thought thatwas one wild adventure, check out these other animal encounters. and don't forget, subscribe to follow me and the crew on this season of breaking trail. this episode of breaking trail was brought to you by thebuypower card from capital one. every purchase brings you closer to a new chevrolet, buick, gmc, or cadillac vehicle. (wild animal sounds)
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