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Date & Time : 20, April 2024 03:43
General Characteristics of Reptilia
Classification of Reptilia
A Few Examples
1.Chelone
Common name-Green turtle.
Distribution-
Habitat-marine.
Food-marine algae.
Identifying characters-
- Body color-olive or brown with yellowish spots.
- Integument- covered by smooth shell.
- four pairs of coastal shields on dorsal surface fitting closely.
- Head-one pair of prefrontal shields covers the head.
- EyesConsisting of eyelids and nictating membrane.
- Limbs-wing-like paddles with only one claw.
- Unhooked jaws are present.
2.Testudo
Common name-land tortoise.
Distribution-
Habitat-
Food-worms and insects.
Identifying characters-
- Carapace-very convex, no nuchal plate.
- Plastron-concave, central and marginal scales are yellow starred.
- Feet-phalanges are reduced to two in digits.
- male is smaller than female.
- They can live without water for along time.
- In cold water, it hibernates underground.
3.Hemidactylus
Common Name-House lizard.
Distribution
Food-insects.
Identifying characters
- Integument-scaly,minute and smooth scales.
- Eyes-small eyes but eyelids are fused.
- Ears-like openings whichare vertical.
- Tongue-short, stcky and slightly notched.
- Tail-long tail having a great power of regeneration.
- Digits-smooth surface,clawed and two rows of ridged lamellae which help in movement.
- several femoral pores are present on the thigh of male.
General characters-
- one supra-temporal arch is present.
4.Varanus
common name-common Indian monitor.
Distribution-
Habitat-burrows and trees.
Food-reptiles, mammals and dead bodies etc.
Identifying characters-
- Body color-brownish color with darker spots in rows.
- Integument-skin is covered with scales -dorsal and vetral.
- Dorsal-very small scales with tubercles and ventral scales are arranged in rows.
5.Ophiosaurus
Common name-glass-snake or limblees lizard.
Distribution-
Habitat-burrows and bushy loclities.
Food-snails, mice, insects,worms and small lizaards.
Identifying characters-
- Body-long, cylindrical and similar to snake.
- Head-similar to the typical lizard.
- Eyes-movable eyelids on eyes.
- Ear-openings represents the ear.
- Tongue-consist of anterior(thin,extensile and retractile) and posterior(thicker).
- Integument-covered by scales which is further underlyning by bony pltes.
- Limbs-reduced to small cloacal spikes(a pair).
- Tail-long and very brittle.
6.Draco
Common name-flying lizard.
Distribution-
Habitat
Food-
Identifying characters-
- Body-dorso-ventrally compressed.
- Eyes-very small eyes, but eyelids are complete.
7.Viper
Common name-daboia.
Distribution-
Habitat-rocky bushy regions.
Identifying characters-
- Body color-pale brown but underparts are yellowish white. There are three longitudinal series of black spots.
- Body length-one and a half of metre.
- Head-triangular head with imbricate scales on upper surface.
- Eyes-beuatiful eyes with golden iris and elliptical pupil.
- Snout-angulate, nasal opening is quite prominent.
- Scales-scales are arranged in thirty rows.
- Supra-labials-10-12,4th is the largst.
- it's venom is haemotoxic.
8.Elaps
Common name-coral snake
Distribution-
Habitat-
Food-
Identifying characters-
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