The Amazing Reptiles of the World Y: CAMERON BERNARD, RYAN KIEWIT, & CAMERON FLORES
Mar 31, 2015
The Amazing Reptiles of the World
BY: CAMERON BERNARD, RYAN KIEWIT, & CAMERON FLORES
Class: Reptilia (Known for dry skin, epidermal scales, and respiration through the use of lungs)Order Testudines (Lack of teeth in adult form, instead they have modified beaks)Order Crocodylia (Elongated, full with muscles) Order Sphenodontida (Primitive lizards with well developed partial eyes)Order Squamata (Recognized by skull and jaw structures, most successful reptiles)
Reptile Classification
Examples: Turtles & TortoisesThere are approximately 300 different
species The bony shell, limbs articulating inward
towards the ribs, and the keratinized beak characterize turtles
The ventral portion of the shell is referred to as the plastron
The dorsal portion of the shell is referred to as the carapace which connects to the vertibrae, expanded ribs, and bones in the dermis of the skin
Order Testudines
Order Crocodylia
Examples: Crocodiles, Alligators, Gavials, ad Caimans Approximately 21 different species
They use their elongated snaps to capture its prey by utilizing swift sideways sweeps of the head
Nostrils at the end of the snout enables for the animal to breathe while submerged
Their muscularly elongated tail allows for swimming, offensive and defensive maneuvers, and attacking prey
Teeth are only necessary for seizing prey because they swallow their meals whole!
Crocodilians eat rocks and other sharp objects to aid in the food digestion process
Order Sphenodontida
Examples: Tuataras or lizard like reptiles Nearly 200 million years ago in the Mesozoic
era, tuataras became nearly extinct Two rows of teeth on the upper jaw enable
easy distinguishing among other reptiles An additional row of teeth on the bottom jaw
allows for easy chewing of animals such as birds
Tuataras are now only located in New Zealand and are protected by New Zealand law enforcement of preserved islands
Order Squamata
Examples: Snakes, Geckos, Iguanas, Chameleons, and Anolis
The order contains three suborders; Lizards, Snakes, and Worm Lizards
Lizards generally live on the substrates of rocks and retreat under rocks or logs if necessary
Lizards very in length from a few centimeters to 3 m
General Reptile Charactoristics Unlike the skin of amphibians, reptiles skin
has no respiratory function The skin is dry and thick and some scales
are modified for various functions All reptiles shed Blood flow does not extend to the epidermis
which allows for easy shedding of skin Reptile skulls have secondary palates which
separates the nasal passages from the oral cavity
Reptiles exhibit great flexibility
Nutrition and Digestion
Most reptiles are carnivorous, though turtles may be associated as herbivores, or omnivores as well
Snakes have adaptations in their skill necessary for feeding (The skull and jaw detach to allow digestion of food much larder than the snakes head)
Some lizards, anurans, and tuatara possess sticky tongues
Vipers utilize hollow teeth to inject their venom into their prey
Circulation
Circulation in reptiles is a lot like that of the amphibian circulatory system
Reptiles have two atria The ventral aorta and the conus arteriosus
divide during development in crocodiles The pulmonary artery leaves the ventral side
of the ventricle and takes blood to the lungs Reptiles can go “apnea” which is a period of
not breathing, turtles use this to conserve energy and permit more efficient oxygen usage
Gas Exchange
Reptiles utilize the ability to exchange gas across internal respiratory surfaces in order to avoid losing large amounts of water
Reptiles have a larynx but generally speaking vocal cords are absent
Lungs are sponge like interconnected chambers lines in cartilage
In many reptiles, a negative-pressure mechanist ventilates the lungs
Reptiles can regulate their body temperatures
Nervous System & Sensory Functions
The brain of a reptile is similar to that of other vertebrates in that the cerebral hemisphere is larger than that of amphibians
Reptiles possess binocular vision Many reptiles have upper and lower eyelids
that protect the surface of the eye Some reptiles even posses a median eye
(parietal eye) which are used to better differentiate light and dark orientations of the sun
Excretion and Osmoregulation Kidneys are used in order to filter blood
using nephrons Most reptiles excrete uric acid a
nontoxic soluble precipitate Many reptiles possess water and salt
glands that allow them to remove excess waste more easily
The bladder or the cloacal wall can reabsorb water and re use it in order to conserve in extreme climates
Reproduction
Some reptiles utilize internal fertilization by the means of using amniotic eggs (allows for eggs to be laid outside of water unlike that of amphibians)
In reproduction, males seek out females actively
Many reptiles display head-bobbing to portray their courtship towards the opposite sex
Reptiles produce pheromones to assess the reproductive potential of a mate
After eggs are laid, they are abandoned on the ground, under rocks, in debris, or in sand
Reptilian History
The archosaur depicts lineage of the reptilian species
Reptiles date back to 280 million years ago
Dinosaurs became the ancestors to reptiles
The pterosaurs were part bird, part reptile, and possessed to ability to fly
Many reptiles developed mammal-like characteristics in which were adapted in the Triassic and Carboniferous periods
!!Important Vocab!!
Amniotic Egg-The egg of reptiles, birds, and mammals, that allowed vertebrates to invade terrestrial habitats
Autonomy- Self amputation of an appendage for means of survival
Carapace-Dorsal shell of a turtle Jacobson’s Vomeronasal Organ- Organ used to sample
airborne chemicals Keratin- a tough water-resistant protein found in
epidermis of reptiles Median Eye- A photoreceptor located middorsally on the
head of reptiles Pit Organ- Plasteron- Secondary Plate-