[Illustration: _Two adult banded gecko lizards_] These imaginary tales are passed from generation to generation and are the strongest in regions where the percentage of uneducated people is high. This situation exists in the South and Southwest. Many persons who have been denied educational opportunities are extremely credulous and have a long list of creatures to each of which they credit injurious or helpful powers. A majority of these creatures are perfectly harmless, but they are too numerous to be given space in this publication. However, it seems only fair to mention a few of the commonest of these persecuted species in the hope that they may be recognized as not only harmless, but in many cases actually beneficial to man. Thus may their unwarranted persecution be somewhat reduced. Banded gecko (_Coleonyx variegatus_) Quite small, with velvety skin and delicate markings making it appear fragile and semitransparent, this lizard has little to inspire fear. Hiding away during daylight hours in dark and preferably moist retreats, it comes forth at night in search of insects for food. It is rarely seen unless disturbed in its hiding place, which may be in the corner of a closet or cupboard beneath the sink. If captured, it struggles to escape, emitting a faint, high-pitched squeak. Although the banded gecko is sometimes mistaken for the young of a Gila monster, in general the desert people accuse it of no definite crime, stating merely “we have heard that it is very poisonous,” and in consequence, kill it whenever they find it. Solpugid (_Eremobates_ sp.) Probably because of its large and prominent jaws, the solpugid, _Eremobates sp._, which is closely related to the spiders, is greatly feared. [Illustration: _Solpugid or sun Spider_] “Anything so ugly MUST be poisonous,” seems to be the principal basis for its unhappy reputation. It is often found inside buildings where it has gone in search of insect prey, and Mexican families living in adobe houses with dirt floors are reported to be terrorized by it. In Mexico and in many parts of the Southwest it is known as _niña de la tierra_ or child-of-the-earth. The range of the solpugid or sun spider is by no means limited to the desert, but its reputation as a poisonous creature seems to be much worse in the Southwest than elsewhere. The solpugid not only is perfectly harmless to man but does not rely on poison in capturing its prey, as it has no venom glands whatever. Jerusalem cricket (_Stenopelmatus_ sp.)