WEBVTT - How Do Gila Monsters Work? 0:00:01.920 --> 0:00:04.320 Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of I Heart Radio, 0:00:06.240 --> 0:00:10.280 Hey brain Stuff, Lauren vog obam Here a rub against 0:00:10.320 --> 0:00:14.560 some macineel trees and you're in trouble. Eat a wild 0:00:14.600 --> 0:00:18.200 blue dart frog and you're in bigger trouble. Both species 0:00:18.239 --> 0:00:23.360 are poisonous, meaning they administer toxic substances that can be inhaled, touched, 0:00:23.480 --> 0:00:29.800 or swallowed. Venomous creatures take a different approach. Jellyfish, rattlesnakes, 0:00:29.840 --> 0:00:33.040 and other venom wielders have to inject their targets with 0:00:33.200 --> 0:00:36.559 harmful cocktails, whether by feang, by stinger, or by some 0:00:36.640 --> 0:00:42.639 other means. For the HeLa monster taxonomical name Hiloderma suspect um, 0:00:42.680 --> 0:00:46.360 a quick little bite won't do the trick. Instead, the 0:00:46.440 --> 0:00:49.720 largest lizard native to the United States and venoms attackers 0:00:49.880 --> 0:00:54.000 by chewing on them while he live. Venom rarely kills 0:00:54.080 --> 0:00:57.440 human beings, the oral assault is still none too pleasant. 0:00:58.080 --> 0:01:01.200 After one scientist was not on by a baby helo monster, 0:01:01.600 --> 0:01:05.120 he compared the experience to getting repeatedly struck with a hammer. 0:01:06.959 --> 0:01:10.319 The good news is that HeLa monsters typically avoid people. 0:01:11.160 --> 0:01:14.399 Desert recluses through and through. They spend most of their 0:01:14.440 --> 0:01:18.360 lives hold up in underground layers. Yet the secretive creatures 0:01:18.360 --> 0:01:21.480 have been enlisted in the fight against diabetes, all thanks 0:01:21.520 --> 0:01:26.000 to the venom they carry. Besides the HeLa monster, the 0:01:26.080 --> 0:01:31.800 Heloderma genus includes outwardly similar reptiles called bearded lizards. Herpetologists 0:01:31.840 --> 0:01:34.560 are struggling to get a definitive head count of species 0:01:34.560 --> 0:01:37.920 within that genus. Many regions in North and Central America 0:01:38.160 --> 0:01:42.720 have distinctive looking bearded lizard populations. To date, it's unclear 0:01:42.760 --> 0:01:45.600 whether some of these animals represent separate species or not. 0:01:47.240 --> 0:01:50.480 Various Heloderma lizards can be found from Guatemala to the 0:01:50.520 --> 0:01:54.600 Mormon Corridor. The HeLa monster stands alone, however, as the 0:01:54.680 --> 0:01:59.040 only species natively found on US soil. The animal's natural 0:01:59.120 --> 0:02:03.400 range includes arts of New Mexico, Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah, 0:02:03.520 --> 0:02:08.040 and the Mexican state of Sonora. Oh And, in case 0:02:08.080 --> 0:02:11.040 you're wondering the name Heila monster, it's probably a nod 0:02:11.040 --> 0:02:13.639 to the Heila River in southern Arizona and New Mexico. 0:02:15.200 --> 0:02:17.919 Capable of growing up to twenty two inches or fifty 0:02:18.120 --> 0:02:22.480 cis long, Heila monsters have tiny bones embedded in many 0:02:22.560 --> 0:02:26.720 of their scales. Giving the lizards a heavily appearance. Their 0:02:26.720 --> 0:02:31.400 color schemes include Southwestern hughes with oranged pinkish bands, dots 0:02:31.520 --> 0:02:35.720 or blotches popping out against a charcoal backdrop. Patterns may 0:02:35.800 --> 0:02:39.799 vary from one individual to the next. Heila monsters learn 0:02:39.800 --> 0:02:43.280 about their environments by gathering airborne flavor particles on their 0:02:43.280 --> 0:02:46.640 forked tongues. They share this treat with monitor lizards like 0:02:46.720 --> 0:02:51.720 the famed Komodo dragon, and with many snakes. For the article, 0:02:51.800 --> 0:02:54.040 this episode is based on How Stuff Works. Spoke by 0:02:54.160 --> 0:02:58.560 email with Arizona State University life scientist L. Donardo, He said, 0:02:59.080 --> 0:03:04.160 unlike rattlesnake, Helo monsters do not have fangs. Rattler fangs 0:03:04.200 --> 0:03:08.480 are basically syringes hollowed teeth designed to inject venom with 0:03:08.639 --> 0:03:12.600 rapid efficiency. A Heila monster's venom is produced by quote 0:03:12.639 --> 0:03:17.280 relatively large glands around the lower jaw bones. This toxic 0:03:17.320 --> 0:03:21.239 material comes oozing out as the animal choose. The pearly 0:03:21.280 --> 0:03:24.880 whites contain vertical grooves that help channel the substance, and 0:03:24.919 --> 0:03:29.040 DiNardo said furthermore, to help deliver the venom components into 0:03:29.040 --> 0:03:32.680 the target, the teeth on the lower jaw are somewhat enlarged. 0:03:33.040 --> 0:03:36.560 With each squeeze of the jaws, saliva, including venom, is 0:03:36.600 --> 0:03:38.880 released into the mouth, and some of it moves via 0:03:38.960 --> 0:03:42.640 capillary action up the teeth and into whatever is being bitten. 0:03:43.520 --> 0:03:46.840 While not as sophisticated as rattlesnake venom delivery, it is 0:03:46.920 --> 0:03:52.040 still quite effective. And then there's that twist I mentioned earlier. 0:03:52.360 --> 0:03:55.240 Their venom is being investigated in the fight against type 0:03:55.240 --> 0:03:59.480 two diabetes. Among the many components of helo monster venom 0:03:59.720 --> 0:04:04.240 is the peptide extending four. Chemically, it resembles g lp one, 0:04:04.520 --> 0:04:07.920 a glucose regulating hormone found in the human digestive tract. 0:04:09.320 --> 0:04:12.560 The discovery of extending four in Heila monsters led to 0:04:12.600 --> 0:04:15.320 the development of an FDA approved drug for type two 0:04:15.360 --> 0:04:19.640 diabetes called accnatide, sold under a couple of brand names. 0:04:19.839 --> 0:04:22.760 This medication was first released in two thousand five and 0:04:22.880 --> 0:04:27.480 is now used by more than two million people. Wild 0:04:27.520 --> 0:04:31.040 HeLa monsters are rather stingy with their venom. It's reserved 0:04:31.080 --> 0:04:35.160 for self defense purposes. Weapon the lizard's deploy against coyotes, 0:04:35.200 --> 0:04:38.200 birds of prey, and over curious humans. Keep your hands 0:04:38.240 --> 0:04:41.640 to yourself, folks, They don't generally use it for hunting 0:04:41.720 --> 0:04:44.920 because their prey include things that can be subdued without it. 0:04:45.720 --> 0:04:49.919 DeNardo said. Adult HeLa monsters are near exclusive raiders of 0:04:50.000 --> 0:04:54.400 vertebrate nests, eating quail eggs, rabbit pups, rodent pups, lizard eggs, 0:04:54.440 --> 0:04:58.920 and tortoise eggs. Alas is known about the diets of 0:04:58.960 --> 0:05:01.800 baby helas, they seem to have a taste for eggs 0:05:01.839 --> 0:05:05.679 laid by smaller lizards. Hatcheling Heila monsters were the focus 0:05:05.720 --> 0:05:09.000 of a twenty eighteen paper DeNardo co authored. The lizards 0:05:09.000 --> 0:05:12.359 are committed home bodies, rarely leaving the safety and comfort 0:05:12.400 --> 0:05:16.080 of burrows or rocky dens. Unable to warm themselves like 0:05:16.200 --> 0:05:19.640 humans and other mammals do, Heila monsters derive heat from 0:05:19.640 --> 0:05:23.120 their surroundings. Their ideal body temperature is about eighty four 0:05:23.120 --> 0:05:28.200 degrees fahrenheit that's twenty nine celsius, DeNardo said. In the summer, 0:05:28.279 --> 0:05:31.320 underground temperatures are very close to this throughout the day 0:05:31.320 --> 0:05:34.799 and night. Thus, the borough provides a very good environment 0:05:34.880 --> 0:05:40.280 for the HeLa monster. Become wintertime, the thermometer plummets, even 0:05:40.279 --> 0:05:42.839 though burrows tend to remain warmer than the outside air. 0:05:43.240 --> 0:05:46.320 They made dropped temperatures of just forty five degrees fahrenheit 0:05:46.440 --> 0:05:50.760 that's twelve celsius during the cold months. These cold spells, 0:05:50.800 --> 0:05:56.000 while tolerable, pose logistical problems for infant Heila monsters. Females 0:05:56.120 --> 0:05:59.159 lay clutches of three to nine eggs in midsummer and 0:05:59.200 --> 0:06:02.400 deposited under round Their eggs hatched during the fall when 0:06:02.440 --> 0:06:06.840 the desert grows chilly. By observing artificially warmed eggs and 0:06:06.960 --> 0:06:10.400 a wild clutch found near a construction site, DeNardo and 0:06:10.520 --> 0:06:14.440 his twenty eighteen co authors realized HeLa monsters practice over wintering. 0:06:15.400 --> 0:06:17.440 Food is hard to come by in the autumn season, 0:06:18.080 --> 0:06:21.120 so newborn babies stay put for months on end until 0:06:21.160 --> 0:06:25.159 the weather outside gets warmer and many options increase. Only 0:06:25.200 --> 0:06:29.880 then the hatchlings seek out their first meals. Now, we'd 0:06:29.880 --> 0:06:32.440 be remiss if we didn't mention the prequel to egg 0:06:32.520 --> 0:06:37.000 laying mating behavior, DeNardo said. If they come into contact 0:06:37.040 --> 0:06:40.240 with each other during the breeding season early summer, males 0:06:40.279 --> 0:06:43.359 will fight. The battle is mostly a wrestling match, but 0:06:43.440 --> 0:06:46.320 they can inflict wounds with their bites, often on the 0:06:46.360 --> 0:06:51.160 tops of the head. Meanwhile, as an epilogue, lizards and 0:06:51.279 --> 0:06:55.320 ice skating might seem like a questionable combo unless you're 0:06:55.440 --> 0:06:59.640 the Vegas Golden Nights. This National Hockey League franchise played 0:06:59.680 --> 0:07:03.960 its for game. In the Club's official mascot is Chance, 0:07:04.040 --> 0:07:07.760 an anthropomorphic cula monster. Hey, at least the species is 0:07:07.800 --> 0:07:15.840 indigenous to Nevada. Today's episode is based on the article 0:07:15.960 --> 0:07:18.480 the Reclusive HeLa Monster Packs of Venomous Punch on how 0:07:18.480 --> 0:07:21.720 stuff works dot Com, written by Mark Vancini. Brain Stuff 0:07:21.760 --> 0:07:23.640 is production of I Heart Radio in partnership with how 0:07:23.680 --> 0:07:25.920 stuff works dot Com, and it is produced by Tyler Klein. 0:07:26.440 --> 0:07:29.040 Before more podcasts from my Heart Radio, visit the iHeart 0:07:29.080 --> 0:07:31.680 Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 0:07:31.680 --> 0:07:32.400 favorite shows.