Home Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture Money Videos
lizard
lizard
Table of Contents
References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images & Videos
black girdle-tailed lizard lizard body plans lizard body structures
Study how marine iguanas live on the coasts of the Galapagos Islands and survive on seaweeds
Gila monster (Heloderma suspectum) day gecko blue-tailed skink (Plestiodon skiltonianus) reptile thermoregulation red-barred dragon
How Europe's common chameleon hunts
For Students
day gecko
lizard summary
Quizzes
vulture. An adult bearded vulture at a raptor recovery center. The Gypaetus barbatus also known as the Lammergeier or Lammergeyer, is a bird of prey and considered an Old World vulture.
Animal Factoids
Sea otter (Enhydra lutris), also called great sea otter, rare, completely marine otter of the northern Pacific, usually found in kelp beds. Floats on back. Looks like sea otter laughing. saltwater otters
Animal Group Names
Lion (panthera leo)
Deadliest Animals Quiz
Young chimpanzee dressed in a shirt and sweater vest, scratching his head thinking. (primates)
Wild Words from the Animal Kingdom Vocabulary Quiz
Mute swan with cygnet. (birds)
Match the Baby Animal to Its Mama Quiz
Read Next
animal. Amphibian. Frog. Anura. Ranidae. Frog in grass.
Abundant Animals: The Most Numerous Organisms in the World
Monitor. Varanus salvadorii is a monitor lizard found in New Guinea can grows to 2.7 metres (9 ft.) aka Tree crocodile, Crocodile monitor, Salvadori's monitor, artellia, reptile
7 of the World’s Most Dangerous Lizards and Turtles
Collage of different cats. Made for the cat quiz on Mendel
16 Questions About Pets Answered
Slowworm. Anguis fragilis. Blindworm. Lizard. Anguidae. Close-up of a slowworm's head.
7 Questions About Lizards, Snakes, and Other Reptiles Answered
Spider monkey swinging in a tree. (primate, jungle animal)
Why Do Animals Have Tails?
Discover
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Mozart rehearsing his 12th Mass with singer and musician. (Austrian composer. (Johann Chrysostom Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
7 Famous Child Prodigies
Aphrodite. Greek mythology. Sculpture. Aphrodite is the Greek goddess of love and beauty.
12 Greek Gods and Goddesses
Town of Sisimiut located on the coast of the Davis Strait on Kangerluarsunnguaq Bay, Greenland
The Largest Islands in the World
Moonrise over Tucson, Arizona
Why Doesn’t Arizona Observe Daylight Saving Time?
The Colosseum, Rome, Italy. Giant amphitheatre built in Rome under the Flavian emperors. (ancient architecture; architectural ruins)
New Seven Wonders of the World
Marriage. A couple getting married during a church wedding ceremony. (religion, ceremony, bride, groom)
The Seven Sacraments of the Roman Catholic church
Still from the film Deliverance, 1919. The story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan. View shows Keller in the cockpit/front seat of an airplane.
How Did Helen Keller Fly a Plane?
reptile
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/animal/lizard
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/animal/lizard
Also known as: Sauria
Fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last Updated: • Article History
black girdle-tailed lizard
black girdle-tailed lizard
See all media
Category: Animals & Nature
Related Topics:
chameleon
mosasaur
Iguania
dammūsa
Autarchoglossa
On the Web:
Animal Corner - Lizards (Feb. 26, 2024)
See all related content →

lizard, (suborder Sauria), any of more than 5,500 species of reptiles belonging in the order Squamata (which also includes snakes, suborder Serpentes). Lizards are scaly-skinned reptiles that are usually distinguished from snakes by the possession of legs, movable eyelids, and external ear openings. However, some traditional (that is, non-snake) lizards lack one or more of these features. For example, limb degeneration and loss has occurred in glass lizards (Ophisaurus) and other lizard groups. Movable eyelids have been lost in some geckos, skinks, and night lizards. External ear openings have disappeared in some species in the genera Holbrookia and Cophosaurus. Most ...(100 of 9041 words)

Access the full article
Help support true facts by becoming a member.