(tense music)
- [Narrator] This summer in the scorching deserts
of the Southwest, something strange has happened.
(tense music)
Science experts believe it may be a radioactive anomaly.
- [Logo Scientist] What we have here
is a radioactive anomaly.
- [Narrator] To be honest, no one really knows
why normal size lizards
have now turned into city destroyed monsters.
- What's going on, Coyote pack?
It's a dark windy night in Arizona.
And this evening, we're going to take a look
at two of the coolest lizards in the Southwest,
the Gila monster.
- [Mario] And the beaded lizard.
- Which happened to be the only two venomous lizards
in the Western hemisphere.
Our goal this evening is to take a look
at some of the similarities,
and of course, some of the differences,
and then ultimately at the end decide,
are you team Gila?
- [Mario] Or are you team beaded?
- I don't know.
We'll have to see how this all pans out.
Now Mario, to get started,
it's important to note that neither of these animals
were found in the wild.
Both the Gila and the beaded were born
and raised in captivity,
and they are ambassadors for their species,
and we are very excited to have them here
hanging out with us tonight
for this little educational session
in venomous desert lizards.
- Which means these guys are fairly tame, actually.
That's why we're able to handle them the way we are.
Because, of course, they are venomous.
- [Coyote] Right. - Right.
- Have to be careful.
Not gonna get our fingers too close to those mouths.
You don't want to take an accidental bite,
that would be very painful,
but we'll get to some of that in a second.
I think where it all begins with these two cool lizards
is in the name.
- It's all in the name, right?
So the Gila monster and the beaded lizard
both belong to the genus Heloderma,
which means studded skin.
- That's right.
I'm gonna go ahead and turn my lizard sideways here.
And all of those little bumps that you see running down
the length of each lizard's body are osteoderms,
little pieces of bone covered in skin and scale,
which of course makes them look beaded or armored.
- Right, and hence the name beaded lizard, right?
All those little osteoderms
look like little tiny bead work.
So the people in the range of these animals
saw that and said beaded lizard.
- Right, and pretty much looks like armor coating.
Now, when you look at these two lizards
and you realize that they are related,
and they actually are buddies,
they live together in captivity, which is kind of cool.
So they're very friendly.
You guys don't have to worry about them
possibly getting into a fight with one another.
There is another really interesting and obvious difference
between the two of these lizards.
- Yes. - And of course that size.
- That's right.
I mean, look at the size of this beaded lizard
compared to the Gila monster.
- Lets try to turn him sideways real quick
so that everybody can just see
that difference. - Look at that.
That's significant, - Right.
- Right, now you're used to seeing the Gila monster
on some Brave Wilderness episodes,
but we've never featured the beaded lizard.
And a really cool fact is,
even though the beaded lizard is larger,
they can get up to three feet in length.
So this one has a little bit more growing to do.
The Gila monster's technically the largest native species,
lizard species, in the United States.
- Right, and for a Gila monster,
this is pretty much considered full grown.
They can get a little bit bigger than this,
but when you think about this as being a full grown Gila
and that being nearly a full grown beaded lizard,
that is a huge difference.
- Yeah, and I think the beaded
gets a very big point in size.
- I would agree.
The beaded lizard when it comes to size mattering,
it might make a difference when it comes
to hunting for your prey.
Now, one thing you'll also notice is the length of the tail.
- Oh yes. - The tail has
some differences, but also some similarities.
Let's try to see if we can get those side by side.
- Look at that.
The tail of the beaded is significantly longer.
The Gila monster has a little bit more
of a short and stout tail.
Now, they both serve a similar function
and they store fat in their tails.
So if you were to give a squeeze to your Gila's tail,
(indistinct) beaded, right?
That's all the fat reserve.
So a healthy Gila and beaded lizard
will have a nice fat reserve in their tail.
- And the reason for them keeping these fat reserves
in their tails is that in the desert environment,
sometimes if there's a prolonged drought
and these lizards need to stay down in their burrows
for months at a time,
they can survive off of the nutrients
that exist within that fat reserve in the tail.
- Exactly because both the Gila monster
and the beaded lizard live in arid environments.
In fact, the beaded lizard is found in Mexico
down to Guatemala.
Whereas the Gila monster overlaps in certain ranges
as the beaded lizard.
But of course, found the parts of the US.
- Right, and it's important to note that the Gila monster
is the only venomous lizard in the United States.
And combined together,
these are the only two venomous lizards
in the Western hemisphere.
- That's right, that's right. - Pretty cool.
Now, another similarity that these two lizards share,
and you can probably notice that forked tongue
sticking out back and forth,
is of course that tongue structure.
- [Mario] Yep, the forked tongue is a extra sensory organ.
It's a chemo receptor.
So if you were to look at the eyes
of the Gila and the beaded, are they big?
- [Host] They're pretty small.
- Pretty tiny, yeah, they don't have good vision.
So they actually rely on their forked tongue,
their excellent sense of hearing and sense of smell
to detect prey and predators.
And that leads to a very good question.
What do Gila monsters and beadeds eat?
- Well it's important to note that they're very slow moving,
so they're not exactly gonna chase down
a Jack rabbit or a roadrunner.
- Check this out, check this out, ready?
That's about top speed. - Yeah.
- They're not fast. - Slow moving.
It's like a tortoise, for the most part,
which means they're opportunistic.
The easier than meal that they can consume,
the better it's going to be for the lizard.
So they're famous for being able to rob bird nests,
other eggs, or other young.
Where else might you find young animals?
- Right, so they're nest specialist.
Now, one thing to consider is ground nesting birds, right?
They're not going up into the trees and raiding the nest,
although the beadeds are semi arboreal,
so sometimes they do,
but primarily stuff that's on the ground,
like little rodents and such
that are gonna make their nest in burrows.
They'll go in there and they'll actually raid the nest.
- So when you think about the fact that these guys
are opportunistic and they'll take
the easiest meal possible, they're venomous.
How is that venom necessarily working to consume their prey
if they don't have to slow something down,
the bite of a rattlesnake?
- Great question, right?
Most snakes will utilize their venom
to dispatch their prey items,
but it is believed that Gila monsters and beaded lizards
use their venom primarily as defense, right?
So because they're slow moving,
they're subject to predation themselves
from coyotes, bobcats and such,
so they have to defend themselves with that venom.
- Right, and it's very important to note
that the venom glands in both the Gila monster
and the beaded lizard are in the lower jaw.
It's not like rattlesnake
that's got a venom gland up on the roof of its head
with hinged fangs, these guys have fixed teeth.
They're very sharp, turned backwards,
and when this animal bites and grabs onto something,
it essentially has to chew in the venom,
which works up through its teeth, grooves in the teeth,
and then mixes into the saliva.
Given the fact that both of these lizards are venomous,
I'm sure one burning question you all have
is which bite is more painful,
the Gila monster or the beaded lizard?
- Well, you've experienced a Gila monster bite,
so do you wanna explain a little bit of how that felt?
- Sure, yeah, the Gila monster bite,
which was an accidental bite, I must add,
was one of the most painful and excruciating experiences
I have ever been through.
My finger was in the mouth of the Gila monster
for probably less than a second,
and still I was envenomated,
and the pain lasts for nearly eight hours.
So when it comes to the venom compounds,
the makeup of that venom, Mario,
which venom would you say is more potent?
- Well, I'm not gonna get bit in by the beaded.
- [Coyote] Good, we're not doing any bites in this episode.
- No, so I'm not gonna necessarily compare side by side,
but they're both in the same genus Heloderma,
which means that their venom components
are gonna be practically identical.
But, because of the size of the beaded,
I think it might deliver more venom
and the mechanical bite itself might be stronger.
- Okay, so we're going to give the beaded lizard
the point for the more impactful and possibly painful bite
based on size and venom yield.
- [Mario] I think so, I think so.
- And I have to give you guys the warning.
If you see one of these lizards in the wild,
whether it's a Gila monster or a beaded lizard,
admire it from a safe distance.
I learned the hard way.
They may look slow, but they need to move quickly,
trust me, they can spend their bodies around
in the blink of an eye,
and if you get your finger, your toe, your hand,
anything stuck in the jaws of this lizard,
it is going to be a very painful experience.
And it's also important to note
that these animals are extremely rare,
and they are a protected species.
You cannot handle, harass, kill a Gila monster or beaded
in any part of their range
because they are protected species.
So the chances of encountering a Gila monster
or a beaded lizard are rare,
and if you do, celebrate it, right?
Take a picture from a safe distance,
leave it alone, and you're fine.
- Now, given the fact that these lizards
are slow moving and monstrous in their own right,
I could only imagine what would it be like
if we were capable of shrinking down to the size
of a prey item and to be in the environment
running through the Southwest
getting chased by Gila monster or a beaded lizard?
Wonder what that would be like.
(tense music)
- [Narrator] This summer in the scorching deserts
of the Southwest, something strange has happened.
(tense music)
Science experts believe it may be a radioactive anomaly.
- [Lego Scientist] What we have here
is a radioactive anomaly.
- [Narrator] A few credible sources point a finger at Mars,
and some even think aliens are to blame.
To be honest, no one really knows why normal size lizards
have now turned into city destroyed monsters.
(tense music)
In an attempt to find the answers,
two fearless adventure seeking men
will embark upon the journey of a lifetime.
(tense music)
- [Lego Man] Step on it, Coyote.
- [Lizard] Come here, Coyote.
(tense music)
Running is futile.
(tense music)
- [Lego Man] Watch out for that rock!
- [Narrator] Get ready to run.
(tense music)
- Whoa, that would be crazy.
- Yeah, tell me about it.
And there you have it.
We've learned some pretty cool things
about the Gila monster and the beaded lizard,
some similarities and some differences.
The only two venomous lizards in the Western hemisphere.
Now it's up to you to decide.
Which are you, team Gila?
- Or team beaded?
- Write in the comment section below
and tell us which one of these lizards is your favorite.
I'm Coyote Peterson.
- I'm Mario Aldecoa.
- Be brave. - Stay wild.
- We'll see on the next adventure.
And if you're a huge fan of Brave Wilderness,
check out our merchandise at shopbravewilderness.com
You'll find everything from t-shirts, to hoodies,
to backpacks, and even my authentic Coyote Peterson hat.
(tense music)