Scientific Name of Lizard

Lacertilia is the Scientific name of the lizard. Reptiles belonging to the class Reptilia and the order Squamata include lizards. There are more than 6,000 different species of lizards on every continent excluding Antarctica. The smallest species of lizard is the Sphaerodactylus ariasae, sometimes known as the Jaragua lizard. It was found on an island off the Dominican Republic’s coast.

What is the Scientific Name of Lizard?

The scientific name of the lizard is Lacertilia. Lizards are a diversified group of squamate reptiles found on every continent except Antarctica. Lizards range in size and shape, from chameleons and geckos that are a few centimeters long to the 3-meter-long Komodo dragon. Many lizards are quadrupedal, whereas others lack legs and have lengthy, wasp-like bodies. Most lizards, including the forest-dwelling Draco lizards, can glide. The largest living lizard in the world, the Komodo Dragon (Varanus komodoensis), is at the other end of the spectrum.

The longest confirmed specimen had a total length of 10.3 feet and weighed more than 160 kilograms. Varanus komodoensis lives on the Indonesian islands of Flores, Rinca, Gili Motang, and Komodo. Additionally, it is reported that the Komodo dragon secretes a toxic combination of proteins and anticoagulants in its saliva, making it poisonous.

Scientific Name of Lizard in India

The scientific name of the Lizard in India is Varanus bengalensis (Bengal monitor). The Bengal monitor, also known as the common Indian monitor, is a monitor lizard that is found throughout the Indian Subcontinent as well as some regions of Southeast Asia and West Asia. Its length, measured from the tip of the snout to the end of the tail, ranges from roughly 61 to 175 cm (24 to 69 in) in size. This huge lizard is primarily a terrestrial animal.

Common Name of Lizard

As we know, lizards are scaly-skin reptiles and includes a number of species. Some of them are Chameleons, dragons, geckos, iguanas, monitors, skinks, and Gila monsters. But they are different from each other in color, dimensions, appearance, etc. Thus, Lizard is the common name used for all of them.

Taxonomy of Lizard

Taxonomy of lizard is as follows:

Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Chordata
Superclass	Tetrapoda
Class	Reptilia
Subclass	Diapsida
Order	Squamata
Suborder	Lacertilia

Family and Species of Lizard

Ther are four suborders of Lacertilia that are usually recognized: Iguania, Gekkota, Amphisbaenia, and Autarchoglossa. And over 5,600 different species of lizards can be found worldwide. Some of them are listed below:

Iguania

Family	Species
Agamidae	Agamid lizards, Old World arboreal lizards
Chamaeleonidae	Chameleons
Corytophanidae	Helmet lizards
Crotaphytidae	Collared lizards, leopard lizards
Hoplocercidae	Dwarf and spiny-tail iguanas

Gekkota

Family	Species
Eublepharinae	‘Eyelid’ geckos
Gekkonidae	Geckos
Pygopodidae	Flap-footed lizards

Amphisbaenia

Family	Species
Amphisbaenidae	Amphisbaenids, tropical worm lizards
Bipedidae	Ajolotes
Rhineuridae	North American worm lizards
Trogonophidae	Palearctic worm lizards
Blanidae	Anatolian, Iberian, and Moroccan worm lizards

Autarchoglossa

Family	Species
Anguidae	Alligator Lizards, Anguid Lizards, Anguids, Galliwasps, Glass Lizards
Anniellidae	Legless Lizards, North American Legless Lizards
Cordylidae	Girdle-tailed Lizards
Gerrhosauridae	Plated Lizards
Gymnophthalmidae	Spectacled lizards

Characteristics of Lizard

Some of the important characteristics of Lizards are mentioned below:

• The lizards are four-legged animals with external ears, movable eyelids, a small neck, and a lengthy tail that they can lose to run away from predators.
• The lifespan of a lizard varies depending on its species. In a typical household, geckos live for around 10-15 years, chameleons for about 5-7 years, iguanas for about 20 years, and the Komodo Dragon, the largest of the reptiles, lives for about 40 years on average.
• Most lizards are predators, and their preferred prey is tiny, terrestrial invertebrates, particularly insects. Many are the predators that “sit and wait.” Chameleons eat spiders as well as insects including beetles, grasshoppers, and winged termites.
• The senses of sight, touch, smell, and hearing are all used by lizards. While geckos depend heavily on their sharp vision to locate and judge the distance to their food before striking, skinks primarily reside under loose dirt and depend on their sense of smell and touch.
• The tongue of the lizards is always lengthy and stretches outward from the mouth. Whiptails, beaded lizards, and monitor lizards have forked tongues that are mainly used to sense the environment.

FAQs on Scientific Name of Lizard

1. What is the Scientific name of the Indian Lizard?

The Bengal monitor, also known as the common Indian monitor (Varanus bengalensis), is a monitor lizard that is found throughout the Indian Subcontinent as well as some regions of Southeast Asia and West Asia.

2. What is the Scientific name of Lizard?

The scientific name of the lizard is Lacertilia. Reptiles belonging to the class Reptilia and the order Squamata include lizards. There are many different types of lizards, some of which are even profoundly deaf.

3. What is the Scientific name for the Largest Lizard in the World?

The scientific name of the largest living lizard in the world is Varanus komodoensis (Komodo Dragon). The longest confirmed specimen had a total length of 10.3 feet and weighed more than 160 kilograms.

4. Is Dragon a Lizard Species?

The dragon is a member of the Varanidae family of monitor lizards. It can be found on Komodo Island and a few nearby Lesser Sunda Islands in Indonesia.

5. How many Species of Lizards are there?

With over 7,000 species and distribution throughout all continents save for Antarctica and the majority of oceanic island chains, lizards are a common category of squamate reptiles.