having the body covered or partially covered with thin horny plates, as some fish and reptiles
<adj.all>
Scaly \Scal"y\, a. 1. Covered or abounding with scales; as, a scaly fish. ``Scaly crocodile.'' --Milton.
2. Resembling scales, lamin[ae], or layers.
3. Mean; low; as, a scaly fellow. [Low]
4. (Bot.) Composed of scales lying over each other; as, a scaly bulb; covered with scales; as, a scaly stem.
{Scaly ant-eater} (Zo["o]l.), the pangolin.
The radium, which is leached from uranium and thorium found in deep geological formations, is brought to the surface with oilfield brine and tends to concentrate in the scaly residue that forms inside pipe.
They cause the skin to decay; it becomes dark, scaly, flaccid. And in the severest cases, lesions develop over the eyes until sight is gone.
It's a lot more fun that way, too." Larimer likes other animals, but says there's something special about a scaly pet that slithers and hisses instead of barking all night.