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EntityQ15879· pop 148· linked from 6,071 articles

Lacertilia

Also known as lizards

Lizard is the common name used for all squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The grouping is paraphyletic as some lizards are more closely related to snakes than they are to other lizards. Lizards range in size from chameleons and geckos a few centimeters long to the 3-meter-long Komodo dragon.

OverviewAI-generated

Lacertilia is a suborder within the class Reptilia and the phylum Chordata. It belongs to the order Squamata and was established by Günther in 1867. The taxon is distinct from Sauria and is categorized under the Commons topic "Lizards." Its habitat includes brackish and freshwater environments.

Scientific literature references the group in 112 PubMed records. It is cited by 6,071 other encyclopedia articles. The taxon appears in various historical sources, including the Bible Encyclopedia of Archimandrite Nicephorus, Gujin Tushu Jicheng, Zedler, Großes vollständiges Universallexicon aller Wissenschaften und Künste, and the Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary.

Biological records from institutions such as NMMNHS, UF, UCM, MSB, and CMN document specimens in the United States, Venezuela, Mongolia, Bolivia, and South Africa. These records include 51 entries associated with the family delphacidae.

Synthesized by Vinony from 24 facts across 5 sources: Wikidata, PubMed, WoRMS, iDigBio, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

In the Vinony graph

Within Vinony's link graph, Lacertilia is referenced by 6,071 other articles, and connects out to gecko, Scincidae and snake.

It is catalogued under topics including Extant Hettangian first appearances, Lizards and Paraphyletic groups.

Its subject is documented across 142 Wikipedia language editions.

Species

Suborder

PhylumChordata
OrderSquamata

Habitatbrackish, freshwater

via

Museum specimens

Specimen records: 51
Family: Delphacidae
Collections: NMMNHS, UF, UCM, MSB, CMN
Recorded in: United States, Venezuela, Mongolia, Bolivia, South Africa, Barbados

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Research

112 papers

When lizards shift to a more plant-based lifestyle: The macroevolution of mutualistic lizard-plant-interactions (Squamata: Sauria/Lacertilia).Molecular phylogenetics and evolution · 2023Kahnt B, Theodorou P, Grimm-Seyfarth A et al.DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2023.107839
Sacral ribs of lacertilia.Nature · 1947EL-TOUBI MRDOI: 10.1038/159342b0
[Polyspermia in Lacertilia].Archives de biologie · 1956PASTEELS JJ
Blood cells and hematological parameters of the mountain dragon, Diploderma micangshanensis (Squamata: Lacertilia: Agamidae).PeerJ · 2021Bai Y, Li G, Lin S et al.DOI: 10.7717/peerj.12397
Novel placental structure in the Mexican gerrhonotine lizard, Mesaspis viridiflava (Lacertilia; Anguidae).Journal of morphology · 2019Stewart JR, Mendez de la Cruz FRDOI: 10.1002/jmor.20912
[DNA barcoding of COI gene in some medicinal animals of Lacertilia].Zhongguo Zhong yao za zhi = Zhongguo zhongyao zazhi = China journal of Chinese materia medica · 2013Li XL, Zhang YY, Xu YL et al.
A new species of Phyllurus leaf-tailed gecko (Lacertilia: Carphodactylidae) from Scawfell Island, mid-east Queensland, Australia.Zootaxa · 2023Hoskin CJDOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5244.3.2
Can all snakes swim? A review of the evidence and testing species across phylogeny and morphological diversity.ReviewZoology (Jena, Germany) · 2024Fosseries G, Herrel A, Godoy-Diana R et al.DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2024.126223

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Wikidata facts

Image: Lizard Collage.jpg

Show 2 more facts

Commons category: Lizards
taxon name: Lacertilia

Sources (4)

via Wikidata · CC0

~30 min read

Encyclopedic overview

37 sections

Contents

Anatomy
Largest and smallest
Distinguishing features
Physiology
Locomotion
Senses
Venom
Respiration
Reproduction and life cycle
Aging
Behaviour
Diurnality and thermoregulation
Territoriality
Communication
Defence
Ecology
Distribution and habitat
Diet
Antipredator adaptations
Camouflage
Autotomy
Escape, playing dead, reflex bleeding
Evolution
Fossil history
Phylogeny
External
Internal
Taxonomy
Convergence
Relationship with humans
Interactions and uses by humans
In culture
Notes
References
General sources
Further reading
External links

Most lizards are quadrupedal, running with a strong side-to-side motion. Some lineages (known as "legless lizards") have secondarily lost their legs, and have long snake-like bodies. Some lizards, such as the forest-dwelling Draco, are able to glide. They are often territorial, the males fighting off other males and signalling, often with bright colours, to attract mates and to intimidate rivals. Lizards are mainly carnivorous, often being sit-and-wait predators; many smaller species eat insects, while the Komodo eats mammals as big as water buffalo.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Lacertilia” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.