Page:Natural History, Reptiles.djvu/65

Rh themselves in the mud, at the bottom of some stagnant pond, and there they remain hidden in a state of inactivity, till the return of milder weather. It is asserted by travellers, that they always avoid swiftly running streams and resort in preference to the creeks of large rivers or to stagnant ponds. In such localities they may be seen in immense numbers, and in the remote parts of South America which are unfrequented, they abound in incredible multitudes, protruding their great flat heads through the leaves of the aquatic plants, such as the nymphæa and pontederia, which cover the surface of the water, and there watch for their prey: at other times they may be seen sleeping or basking on the sunny banks. It is only during the hottest part of the day that they ever venture on shore: before evening they return to the water, as night is their time for seeking their prey, in which they manifest much activity. Fishes constitute their chief food, and some physiologists have supposed that the musky fluid secreted by the glands under the throat, as noticed above, forms a sort of bait by which their prey is attracted towards them. It is very rare that the Alligators attack man, unless their eggs or their young are in danger; but it is said that the female of these reptiles manifests a much more tender care for her offspring than is exhibited by this class in general. She generally lays from fifty to sixty eggs in one place, which are about as large as those of the goose; these she covers over with sand, leaving them to be hatched by the heat of the sun; but she never removes to any great distance from them. The young ones when they come forth from the shell are about