About 300 million years ago, some amphibians changed into reptiles. They could live on land all the time. Reptiles have backbones and scaly skin, and most lay eggs. Many reptiles, such as crocodiles, spend lots of time in the water, but they can’t breathe underwater. They use the Sun to keep their bodies warm.
Is it true? Some early reptiles had sails, on their backs.
Yes. Dimetrodon had a skin ‘sail’ on its back. It soaked up the Sun’s heat, and controlled the animal’s body temperature.
Amazing! A small animal found in Scotland, in rocks that are 350 million years old, might be one of the first reptiles. But some scientists say it was an amphibian.
What did reptiles eat?
The first reptiles, such as Hylonomus, were small lizard-like animals that ate tiny creatures. Reptiles learned how to run quickly so they could catch fast-moving insects. As reptiles became larger, they caught and ate bigger prey, including other reptiles. Some reptiles only ate plants.
Which reptiles had fur?
Some prehistoric reptiles grew fur on their bodies to keep themselves warm. These were the cynodonts. They lived about 245 million years ago. Over time they changed into a completely new group of animals, called mammals.
Picture Credit : Google