Lacertoidea
| Lacertoids Temporal range: Paleocene–Holocene, 60–0Ma | |
|---|---|
 | |
| A sand lizard, Lacerta agilis | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Superfamily: | Lacertoidea Oppel, 1811 |
| Subgroups | |
The Lacertoidea is a group of lizards that includes the Lacertidae, Teiidae, Gymnophthalmidae, and, according to recent molecular analyses, the burrowing Amphisbaenia. Studies of anatomy have traditionally grouped the lacertoids with skinks,[1] however more recent studies focusing on DNA have placed them as a distinct group of lizards.[2] The relationships of the Amphisbaenia to other lizards have long been a mystery. Although superficially snakelike, their anatomy and locomotion is quite distinct from that of snakes. However, they do not closely resemble any other group of lizards. Recent molecular studies suggest that amphisbaenians are grouped with the Lacertidae, in a group named the Lacertibaenia.[2]
References
- ↑ Gauthier, Jacques A., et al. "Assembling the squamate tree of life: Perspectives from the phenotype and the fossil record." Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History 53.1 (2012): 3-308.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Wiens, J. J., Hutter, C. R., Mulcahy, D. G., Noonan, B. P., Townsend, T. M., Sites, J. W., & Reeder, T. W. (2012). Resolving the phylogeny of lizards and snakes (Squamata) with extensive sampling of genes and species. Biology Letters, 8(6), 1043-1046.
Media related to Lacertoidea at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Lacertoidea at Wikispecies