Tuatara Trivia Questions

Tuatara possess a parietal eye, which has a lens and retina; it's covered by scales in adults but still functions in circadian rhythms.

Tuatara are not lizards; they belong to the order Rhynchocephalia, which diverged from lizards over 200 million years ago.

Tuatara have exceptionally slow metabolisms and can reach 100+ years; some captive individuals have surpassed 120 years.

Tuatara are now extinct on the mainland; wild populations survive only on about 30 small offshore islands, with no natural populations on South or Stewart Islands.

Tuatara are ectothermic but thrive in cooler temperatures (10–20°C) and avoid prolonged basking; they are active at night.

This overbite arrangement, with the lower row fitting between the upper rows, gives tuatara a powerful, shearing bite unlike any other reptile.

Like birds and crocodilians, tuatara lack an intromittent organ; males transfer sperm by pressing their cloaca against the female's.

While tuatara eggs do incubate for 12–15 months, some sea turtles and crocodiles have longer incubation periods.