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Rhynchocephalia (/ ˌ r ɪ ŋ k oʊ s ɪ ˈ f eɪ l i ə /; lit. ' beak-heads ') is an order of lizard-like reptiles that includes only one living species, the tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus) of New Zealand. Despite its current lack of diversity, during the Mesozoic rhynchocephalians were a speciose group with high morphological and ecological ...
At one point, many disparate species were incorrectly referred to the Rhynchocephalia, resulting in what taxonomists call a "wastebasket taxon". [31] Williston in 1925 proposed the Sphenodontia to include only tuatara and their closest fossil relatives. [31] However, Rhynchocephalia is the older name [30] and in widespread use today. Many ...
Sphenodontidae is a family within the reptile group Rhynchocephalia, comprising taxa most closely related to the living tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus).Historically the taxa included within Sphenodontidae have varied greatly between analyses, and the group has lacked a formal definition. [2]
Rhynchocephalia was a formerly widespread and diverse group of reptiles in the Mesozoic Era. [4] ... for example the diet of the Nile monitor includes crocodile eggs, ...
Rhynchocephalia is an order of lizard-like reptiles that includes only one living species of tuatara, which in turn has two subspecies (Sphenodon punctatus punctatus and Sphenodon punctatus guntheri), which only inhabit parts of New Zealand. [14] Family Sphenodontidae . Genus Sphenodon - tuatara
Rhynchocephalia — an order of lizard-like reptiles, slightly broader than the near-equivalent Sphenodontia; Subcategories. This category has only the following ...
Squamata and Rhynchocephalia form the subclass Lepidosauria, which is the sister group to the Archosauria, the clade that contains crocodiles and birds, and their extinct relatives. Fossils of rhynchocephalians first appear in the Early Triassic , meaning that the lineage leading to squamates must have also existed at the time.
The only living sub-group is the Lepidosauria, which contains two subdivisions, Squamata, which contains lizards and snakes, and Rhynchocephalia, the only extant species of which is the tuatara.