Thank you, Dr. Benson. That kind of "eye lid" makes even more evolutionary sense since it is replaceable every time the animal sheds. If the "normal" kind of eye lid gets damaged the animal is stuck with it. Cyndy -- Keith Benson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Neal Grant wrote: >Hi gang, > >Just wondering, has anyone ever proposed a theory as to the >"evolutionary advantage" of not having eyelids??? > >As a lot of geckos (and snakes I'm almost certain) live in warm, dry >environments, and run about through rocks, brush, and trees, it seems >like having an eye-lid would be pretty important... > They have eyelids - they are simply difficult to see, they are fused and they do not move. Snakes have palpebrae (fancy word for eyelid) as embryos, these fuse and form the spetacle. This is a clear covering over the eye - excellent protection in the situations you describe above. Geckos do the same (well, not the eublepharines) but it is called a brille. When geckos are licking their eyes to clean them, they are not licking their corneas, they are licking the clear brille that overlies the cornea. Keith _______________________________________________ Global Gecko Association http://www.gekkota.com Classifieds http://www.gekkota.com/cgi-gekkota/classifieds.cgi gecko mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.gekkota.com/mailman/listinfo/gecko _______________________________________________ Global Gecko Association http://www.gekkota.com Classifieds http://www.gekkota.com/cgi-gekkota/classifieds.cgi gecko mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.gekkota.com/mailman/listinfo/gecko
