tuatara
Noun
Meaning
tuatara (plural tuataras or tuatara)
A reptile, Sphenodon punctatus, native to New Zealand, that resembles lizards and is the only surviving rhynchocephalian.
Synonyms
Hypernyms
Examples
A 2009 paper re-examined the genetic bases used to distinguish the two species of tuatara, and concluded they only represent geographic variants, and only one species should be recognized.
Description Size comparison of male S. punctatus and human The tuatara is considered the most unspecialised living amniote ; the brain and mode of locomotion resemble those of amphibians and the heart is more primitive than that of any other reptile.
Brother's Island tuatara are slightly smaller, weighing up to 660 g (1.3 lb).
However, kiore ( Polynesian rats ) had recently become established on several of the islands, and tuatara were persisting, but not breeding, on these islands.
Institutions that keep live tuatara This is a good article.
In the 1991–92 season, Little Barrier Island was found to hold only eight tuatara, which were taken into in situ captivity, where females produced 42 eggs, which were incubated at Victoria University.