Mystery mover

Something very odd was going on in the corner of my patio. An earthworm apparently hovering an inch above ground. Its wriggling did not, however, seem to be generating any levitational force, so how could it have freed itself from gravity? Closer inspection (with reading glasses now on) revealed that this actually no at all, but something far more interesting, and certainly not flying. Iberian worm lizard (Blanus cinereus [I live southern Spain]) (Figure 1) had somehow entangled remains a long-abandoned spiderweb. struggles appeared trapped ever higher up gossamer threads, eventually leaving its entire body suspended mid-air. With some trouble I removed sticky webbing slender 10-cm length, released poor thing among leafy debris huge flowerpot home giant taro plant (Alocasia macrorrhizos). It immediately began dig way into ground, for is where lizards spend most their lives, out treacherous spiderwebs. But there mystery yet solve. How legless reptile get patio with tiled floor, surrounding high walls, lack connection soil outside world? lizard. B Dupont (CC BY-SA 2.0) Well, gotten by moving either backwards or forwards, if literature amphisbaenians (the fancy name lizards, Greek meaning “goes both ways”) believed. Back 2nd century BCE, physician poet Nicander Colophon described these animals as having head end, do indeed rear tip resembles another prow stern. And like train locomotive extreme, might possible them change course without turning around. while bidirectional been alluded through centuries – appearing in, example, A Supplement Mr. Chambers’s Cyclopaedia (1753; Vol 1), scientific (eg Sci Mon 1933; 37: 511–21), early 20th-century official British Museum guide, and, nowadays, internet illuminations particular specimen all refute notion. While loose outer layer can make peristaltic, earthworm-like movements (see https://bit.ly/3qYkIE8) give reverse gear burrows, mine just tried wriggle snake-like don’t think backed onto property. turns sneaking someone’s detached largely impenetrable yard probably child’s play lizard, one must presume recent paper Nicholas Longrich colleagues (Proc R Soc 2015; 282: 20143034) indicating crossed Atlantic during long evolutionary history than once! Now, hear you. Surely, distribution creatures, which includes parts North America, Eurasia, Africa, South Caribbean, would appear indicate they lived ago Pangea got are today simply staying burrows when supercontinent started seriously breaking 200 million years ago. there’s problem. Even before paper, molecular evidence indicated world’s diversified recently, phylogenetic crown group emerging 109 ago, major diversification around 56–40 African American separating end period well after respective continents split. authors included morphological analysis fossils alongside studies, things really interesting. Their results suggest today’s descendants moved America right extinction dinosaurs, 65 They first reached Europe Africa crossing Ocean, tunneled cold, high-latitude land bridges then existed. rafts vegetation, roots floating fallen trees, what? What amazing accomplishment small, burrowing reptile! 25 later again, time opposite manner independently Cuba. So, looks travel directions all! All say that, comparison, getting cinch. yet, I’m still unable find vegetation raft tree even out-of-the-way spots. Presumably little lives flowerpot, gobbling tiny insects larvae, although haven’t seen him since him. Oh no…hang on…you he’s floated off Morocco, you? Adrian Burton