Class Reptilia

Stone-cold chillin'

Varanus komodoensis

Cold-blooded killers -- well, cold-blooded, anyway. Reptiles, like fish and amphibians, can't regulate their internal temperatures the way birds and mammals can. Land vertebrate muscle needs warmth to function properly. So, reptiles will bask in the sun to get their bodies up to the proper temperature so they can go out looking for food. Most of the squamates (snakes and lizards) are carnivorous or insectivorous, but most of the chelonids (turtles) are herbivores, preferring to graze on grass or kelp.

Orders found in this class:

Rhynchocephalia: the tuatara
Squamata: snakes and lizards
Crocodilia: alligators and crocodiles
Chelonia: turtles

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