Wildlife of the World
Puzzle 48 · Australasia and Zealandia · Page 74 in print
Tuatara
Tuatara are the only living members of an ancient reptile order. Protected populations survive on New Zealand offshore islands, where these lizard-like reptiles shelter in burrows and sometimes bask in the sun.
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A tuatara's eye and scaly head seen close up.
Species reference for Tuatara. The photograph does not necessarily show the population or place named in the puzzle.
(c) wild_wind, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0 · Original recordImage changes
Resized and converted to JPEG for display; no subject alteration.
A tuatara rests beside a rock in New Zealand.
Species reference for Tuatara. The photograph does not necessarily show the population or place named in the puzzle.
(c) Flavien Saboureau, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0 · Original recordImage changes
Resized and converted to JPEG for display; no subject alteration.
The words
Beetles
Tuatara eat beetles and other invertebrates.
Burrows
Tuatara stay in their burrows in cold weather.
Egg Tooth
Young tuatara have an egg-tooth to break out of the shell.
Fossils
Fossils record the tuatara's extinct relatives, the rhynchocephalians, a reptile group that first appeared over 200 million years ago. All but the tuatara died out about 60 million years ago.
Auckland Zoo (opens a new tab) · doc.govt.nz (opens a new tab) · Science Learning Hub (opens a new tab)
Frogs
Tuatara eat frogs among other prey.
Gondwana
Tuatara ancestors were on the land that split from Gondwana over 80 million years ago.
Millipedes
Tuatara eat millipedes and other invertebrates.
Parietal Eye
The tuatara’s light-sensitive “third eye” on top of the head is associated with detecting changes in light.
Petrel
Many petrel species share island retreats with tuatara, which use prion burrows.
Reptile
The tuatara is a reptile, but it belongs to a different living lineage from lizards.
Seabirds
Tuatara islands hold colonies of breeding seabirds.
Sphenodon
The tuatara is Sphenodon punctatus.
Spines
Males have a crest of spines along the neck and back.
Third Eye
Tuatara have a third eye on top of the head.
Tuatara
Tuatara are a rare reptile found only in New Zealand.
Sources
- Tuatara (source capture)Auckland Zoo
- tuatarawww.doc.govt.nz
- Tuatara (source capture)Science Learning Hub, University of Waikato
- Tuatara (source capture)Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
- Tuatara (source capture)Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa