Reptiles are a group of animals which includes snakes, lizards, turtles, tortoises, alligators and crocodiles. They are all vertebrates (they have bones and skeletons inside their bodies), they breathe air and most of them live on land. Their skins are scaly to stop their bodies drying out.

Amazing! Lizards love sunbathing. All reptiles are cold-blooded. They can’t control their own body temperature but rely on the weather instead. Cold lizards are sluggish and slow. So they warm up in the sun, and then scurry off hunting.

Is it true? Today’s reptiles have famous relatives.

Yes. The relatives of today’s reptiles were the dinosaurs, which ruled the Earth for more than 200 million years. They suddenly died out about 65 million years ago.

Which is the shortest snake?

At only about ten centimetres long, thread snakes are the shortest, thinnest snakes in the world. If you took the lead out of a pencil, they could slither through the hole. These rare snakes live in the West Indies, and eat tiny ants and termites.

Which is the biggest reptile?

The biggest reptiles alive today are saltwater crocodiles. They’re usually about four metres long, but a gigantic crocodile killed in 1957 measured no less than 8.64 metres, and weighed more than two tonnes.

Picture Credit : Google