mesosaur

Any of a group of small aquatic reptiles, from the early Permian period, of the order Mesosauria.


choristoderan

The choristoderans were crocodile-like reptiles with long, narrow jaws used for catching fish.

2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: The First 100 Million Years, Penguin, published 2019, page 109:

A diapsid reptile of the order Choristodera.


ocellated lizard

en-noun

ocellated lizard (plural ocellated lizards)

Timon lepidus (syn. Lacerta lepida), a large wall lizard.


bluebelly

From blue + belly. The ventral abdomen of the adult lizard is characteristically blue. The soldiers wore blue gaberdines.

Sceloporus occidentalis, a North American lizard.


spiny-tailed lizard

spiny-tailed lizard (plural spiny-tailed lizards)


elephantine tortoise

elephantine tortoise (plural elephantine tortoises)

A huge land tortoise, especially the Aldabra giant tortoise Aldabrachelys gigantea, from the Seychelles, or the Galápagos tortoise Chelonoidis niger, from the Galápagos Islands.


sculptured tortoise

sculptured tortoise (plural sculptured tortoises)


soft tortoise

Any of the soft-shelled turtles of the family Trionychidae.


painted turtle

A common American freshwater turtle (Chrysemys picta), with red, orange and yellow markings.


hornsman

A snake, the horned viper (Bitis cornuta).


eastern indigo snake

eastern indigo snake (plural eastern indigo snakes)

Drymarchon couperi, a large non-venomous colubrid snake native to the eastern United States.


wart snake

Acrochordus javanicus of Java (illustrated here) like the other wart snakes hunts fish and for this reason has modified its teeth into long fangs.

1987, Elena Marcon, Manuel Mongini, World Encyclopedia of Animals, page 158:

The acrochordids or wart snakes, have only one genus, with three species. All of these are found in Southeast Asia and Australasia.

1998, Lenny Flank, Snakes: Their Care and Keeping, page 51:

Wart snakes are adapted to aquatic systems and prey almost exclusively on fish.

2008, Mark Mitchell, Thomas N. Tully Jr., Manual of Exotic Pet Practice, page 142:

Any of various primitive aquatic snakes in the monotypic family Acrochordidae (the single genus Acrochordus).


leaf-tailed gecko

leaf-tailed gecko (plural leaf-tailed geckos)

Saltuarius eximius, in the family Carphodactylidae, native to the Melville Range in Northeastern Australia.


ribbon snake

Thamnophis sauritus, a common garter snake endemic to eastern North America.


chicken snake

So called because they like to eat chicken eggs.

Any of various North American colubrid snakes.


thunder snake

Lampropeltis getula getula, the eastern kingsnake.


ostrich dinosaur

ostrich dinosaur (plural ostrich dinosaurs)


western rat snake

western rat snake (plural western rat snakes)

Pantherophis obsoletus, a non-venomous colubrid found in North America.


diamond python

Morelia spilota spilota, a species of python, of Australia.


bullsnake

Pituophis catenifer sayi, a large non-venomous colubrid snake endemic to the central United States, northern Mexico, and southwestern Canada.


black snake

Any of certain snakes that are black in colour:

Coluber constrictor, a non-venomous North and Central American species of snake.

Coluber constrictor
Coluber constrictor#Translingual


pilot snake

Agkistrodon contortrix
Agkistrodon contortrix#Translingual

Agkistrodon contortrix, the copperhead, a venomous viper found in the United States.


indigo snake

A snake of the genus Drymarchon, species of which are found the southeastern US, Texas, and northern South America.


Russell's viper

Russell's viper (plural Russell's vipers)

Named in honour of Patrick Russell (1726–1805), Scottish herpetologist who first described many of India's snakes.

Some weeks before, one of the masters at the College, an unpopular Parsee, had found a Russell's viper nosing round his classroom.

1924, EM Forster, A Passage to India, Penguin, published 2005, page 164:


sand lizard

Any of many species of lizards found in sandy environments

especially, Lacerta agilis, a lizard distributed across most of Europe and eastwards to Mongolia.


alligator snapping turtle

alligator snapping turtle (plural alligator snapping turtles)

A large freshwater turtle of the Eastern United States (Macrochelys temminckii).


rat snake

Any of many medium to large colubrid constrictors of a kind found through a great portion of the Northern Hemisphere, primarily feeding on rodents and birds.


ornithomimosaurian

Any theropod dinosaur of the clade Ornithomimosauria


oviraptorosaurian

Any maniraptoran dinosaur of the clade Oviraptorosauria


oviraptosaurian

Any maniraptoran dinosaur of the clade Oviraptorosauria.


water snake

A snake that resides in, or spends a lot of time in, fresh water

It slips out of your hands easily, like a water-snake toy.

2020 November 12, Reni Eddo-Lodge, Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race, Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN, page 64:

Trying to pin him down on any one topic, much less a specific time and place, is like trying to hold onto a Water Snake toy—as soon as I think I have a firm grip, he comes gooshing out the other side.

2010 November 1, Mike McMullen, I, Superhero!! :: We Wear Tights So You Won't Have To, Kensington Publishing Corp., →ISBN:

Each time I tried to define it and pin it down to take a closer look, it seemed to slip away from me like one of those water snake toys that you can never hold on to. And then one day I finally discovered the problem.

2015 September 15, M. R. O'Connor, Resurrection Science: Conservation, De-Extinction and the Precarious Future of Wild Things, St. Martin's Press, →ISBN, page 221:

Or to put it differently, tactility reveals the body as a single self-enclosed surface, like a Klein bottle or one of those “water snake” toys, a kid's novelty, in its own way a polymorphous sleeve or screen over which libidinous and[…]

2017 November 28, Keith Leslie Johnson, Jan Svankmajer, University of Illinois Press, →ISBN:

In this Order, "toy water snake” means a toy that is a flexible tube which contains water and which is made of any rubber or plastics.

1968, Great Britain, Statutory Instruments:

She imagined a long pink tube with a winking hole at the end sliding from a body, like a grisly penis or one of those water-snake balloon toys kids give hand jobs to.

2016 August 22, Michelle Tea, Black Wave, The Feminist Press at CUNY, →ISBN, page 155:

A toy consisting of a liquid and (optionally) plastic trinkets encased in a long, soft, plastic torus. It is difficult to grip.


inland taipan

(zoology) Oxyuranus microlepidotus, a highly venomous snake endemic to semiarid regions of central east Australia.


eastern kingsnake

eastern kingsnake (plural eastern kingsnakes)

common kingsnake
common kingsnake#English

Synonym of common kingsnake (“Lampropeltis getula, a harmless colubrid kingsnake endemic to much of warm temperate northern Mexico and the United States”); especially Lampropeltis getula getula which is native to the southeastern and mid-Atlantic states.


Indian cobra

A cobra of the species Naja naja, having on its hood two circular ocelli patterns connected by a curved line.


California kingsnake

California kingsnake (plural California kingsnakes)

Lampropeltis getula californiae, a non-venomous colubrid snake endemic to the western United States and northern Mexico.


eastern ratsnake

eastern ratsnake (plural eastern ratsnakes)

A constrictor snake of the species Pantherophis alleghaniensis, native to eastern and central US and adjoining Canada.


emys

From the translingual genus name Emys and its etymon, the Classical Latin emys, from the Ancient Greek ἐμύς (emús).

Certain Emydes…tend to the Sea-tortoises or Turtles…and yet exhibit characters peculiar to themselves.

1843, The Penny Cyclopædia of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge, XXV, page 57/2:

Remains of the elephant…the beaver, the emys…and goats.

1873, James Murdoch Geikie, The Great Ice Age and Its Relation to the Antiquity of Man, page 492, Appendix:

(zoology) Any member of the small Emys genus of freshwater pond tortoises.


rosy boa

Lichanura trivirgata, a snake of the Boidae family.


roofed turtle

Any of the obsolete genus Kachuga of Asian turtles, now placed in Batagur and Pangshura.


cryptodire

(zoology) Any member of the Cryptodira, the taxonomic suborder of Testudines that includes most living tortoises and turtles.


chasmosaurine

Any ceratopsid dinosaur of the subfamily Chasmosaurinae


coronosaur

Any centrosaurine ceratopsian dinosaur of the genus Coronosaurus.


blind snake

Any snake of the infraorder Scolecophidia


ceratopsoid

Any marginocephalian dinosaur of the superfamily Ceratopsoidea


ichthyosauriform

Any extinct reptile similar to an ichthyosaur


hupehsuchian

Any diapsid reptile of the order †Hupehsuchia


thalattosaur

The preferred habitat of the thalattosaurs was apparently the sea.

2012, Winand Brinkmann, Kenneth De Baets, editors, Paleontological Museum of the University of Zürich: Exhibition Guide, Paleontological Institute and Museum of the University of Zürich, →ISBN, page 75:

A prehistoric marine reptile of the extinct order †Thalattosauria.


abelisauroid

Any dinosaur of the superfamily Abelisauroidea


avetheropod

Any birdlike theropod of the clade Avetheropoda


coelophysoid

Any dinosaur of the superfamily Coelophysoidea


crocodyloid

Any crocodilian of the superfamily Crocodyloidea.


allodaposuchian

From translingual Allodaposuchus + -ian.

Any eusuchian crocodylomorph of the genus Allodaposuchus


varanine

(zoology) A monitor lizard; a member of the subfamily Varaninae.


gavialoid

Any crocodylian of the superfamily Gavialoidea


planocraniid

(zoology) Any crocodylian of the family Planocraniidae.


Trike

(informal) An endearing diminutive name given to an individual Triceratops.


dinosaurologist

(informal) A paleontologist who focuses on studying dinosaurs.


Steggy

(informal) An endearing diminutive name given to an individual Stegosaurus.


dinosaurology

(informal) The branch of paleontology that focuses on studying dinosaurs.

dinosaurologia

(informal) branch of paleontology that focuses on studying dinosaurs


Rexy

Tyrannosaurus rex
Tyrannosaurus rex#English

(informal) An endearing diminutive name given to an individual Tyrannosaurus rex.


agathaumid

(obsolete, paleontology) Any of the Agathaumidae, an obsolete family of ceratopsian dinosaurs.


brown snake

Any of certain snakes that are brown in color of species:

Pseudonaja spp., Australian brown snakes

Storeria spp., North American brown snakes

Elapognathus minor, Australian short-nosed snake or little brown snake

Pseudechis australis, Australian mulga or king brown snake


western fence lizard

western fence lizard (plural western fence lizards)

Sceloporus occidentalis, a North American lizard.


water moccasin

Agkistrodon piscivorus
Agkistrodon piscivorus#Translingual

A semiaquatic venomous snake native to the southeastern United States, Agkistrodon piscivorus.


lamprophiid

(zoology) Any member of the snake family Lamprophiidae.


crurotarsan

(zoology) Any of the Crurotarsi, a taxonomic group including the archosaurs and phytosaurs.


thirst snake

Any of various species of snake of the genus Dipsas, native to Central America.


American alligator

American alligator (plural American alligators)

Alligator mississippiensis
Alligator mississippiensis#Translingual

An alligator of a species native to the southeastern United States, Alligator mississippiensis.


beaded lizard

In reference to the many small bead-like protrusions on its skin.

Any venomous lizard of family Helodermatidae.

Especially, a species of venomous lizard found principally in Mexico and southern Guatemala, Heloderma horridum.


ophidiarium

ophidiarium (plural ophidiariums or ophidiaria)

ophidiariums (plural)
ophidiaria (plural)

From Ancient Greek ὄφις (óphis, “snake”) + -arium.


flapling

The flaplings, with short faces and only very little teeth, must seek out their own food, and restrict themselves to land, agilely snapping at insects until they are old enough to venture out to the fishing waters with their relatives.

2022, Thomas Halliday, Otherlands, Penguin, published 2023, page 148:

(paleontology, informal) A juvenile pterosaur.


desmatochelyid

Any of the genus †Desmatochelys of extinct sea turtles.


eumaniraptoran

Any bird-like dinosaur of the taxon Eumaniraptora


carcharodontosaurian

Any dinosaur of the genus Carcharodontosaurus.


saurolophine

Any dinosaur of the subfamily Saurolophinae


eusauropod

Any true sauropod dinosaur of the clade Eusauropoda


flagellicaudatan

Any of the dinosaurs of the clade Flagellicaudata.


lithostrotian

Any titanosaur of the taxon Lithostrotia


ornithothoracine

From translingual Ornithothoraces + -ine.

Any avialan of the clade Ornithothoraces


pengornithid

Any avialan of the family Pengornithidae.


saltasaurine

Any titanosaurian sauropod of the subfamily Saltasaurinae.


pterodactyloid

Any pterosaur of the suborder Pterodactyloidea


turiasaurian

Any sauropod dinosaur of the clade Turiasauria.


somphospondylan

Any titanosauriform sauropod of the clade Somphospondyli


ornithuromorph

The lineage that led to all living birds is known as the ornithuromorphs. […] Roughly three-quarters of all species on the planet were wiped out, including all feathered dinosaurs except the ornithuromorphs.

2023 June 3, Carl Zimmer, “How Did Birds First Take Off?”, in The New York Times:

Any avialan of the group Ornithuromorpha.


Jesus lizard

So called because they can run on water; walking on water was one of the miracles ascribed to Jesus Christ.

Any of the Latin American lizards of the genus Basiliscus.


chelonioid

Any sea turtle of the superfamily Chelonioidea


eurysternid

Any of the family Eurysternidae of extinct turtles.


eucryptodiran

Basal eucryptodiran xinjiangchelyids or macrobaenids―sinemydids are represented in the Phu Kradung Formation by a few fragmentary remains.

2009, Eric Buffetaut, Late Palaeozoic and Mesozoic Ecosystems in SE Asia:

(zoology) Any turtle of the suborder Eucryptodira.


plesiochelyid

Any extinct turtle of the family Plesiochelyidae


xinjiangchelyid

Fragments of plastron with a peg-like process on the lateral plastral margin indicate a ligamentous attachment between the carapace and plastron, as in xinjiangchelyids and macrobaenids.

2009, Eric Buffetaut, Late Palaeozoic and Mesozoic Ecosystems in SE Asia, page 142:

[…] a mass accumulation of exceptionally well preserved xinjiangchelyid turtles […]

2013, Joachim Reitner, Qun Yang, Yongdong Wang, Palaeobiology and Geobiology of Fossil Lagerstätten through Earth History:

Any member of the family †Xinjiangchelyidae of extinct turtles.


pogona

From the genus name, from Ancient Greek πώγων (pṓgōn, “beard”).

Additionally, DNA of following species not covered by the assay was tested to exclude cross-reactivity: macaque, budgerigar, pogona, and carp.

2015 July 6, “Automated Forensic Animal Family Identification by Nested PCR and Melt Curve Analysis on an Off-the-Shelf Thermocycler Augmented with a Centrifugal Microfluidic Disk Segment”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

A bearded dragon, any lizard of the genus Pogona, native to Australia.


pachyrostran

Any ceratopsid dinosaur of the clade Pachyrostra


pachyrhinosaurin

In addition, we modified Characters 59 and 61, which describe the epiparietal (ep) morphology at loci ep 2 and ep 3, to include a state that differentiates between rugose, tongue-shaped horncores and greatly elongate, spike-like horncores that, for example, characterize the ep 3 locus in pachyrhinosaurins and some other taxa (e.g., Styracosaurus).

2015 July 9, “Cranial Anatomy of Wendiceratops pinhornensis gen. et sp. nov., a Centrosaurine Ceratopsid (Dinosauria: Ornithischia) from the Oldman Formation (Campanian), Alberta, Canada, and the Evolution of Ceratopsid Nasal Ornamentation”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

Any of the dinosaurs of the tribe †Pachyrhinosaurini, a clade of centrosaurine ceratopsids.


alligator lizard

alligator lizard (plural alligator lizards)

As a guide to start your collection we'd suggest either iguanas, tejus, swifts, basilisks, horned toads or alligator lizards.

(US) Any of several species of lizards in the genera Elgaria and Gerrhonotus.


American chameleon

American chameleon (plural American chameleons)

An arboreal lizard native to the southeastern US, Anolis carolinensis, best known for its ability to change skin color in the same manner as a chameleon


dromaeosaurine

Liaoning dromaeosaurids may simply be a grade on the line to velociraptorines and dromaeosaurines, and short arms may have evolved multiple times in this grade.

2015 July 16, Junchang Lü, Stephen L. Brusatte, “A large, short-armed, winged dromaeosaurid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the Early Cretaceous of China and its implications for feather evolution”, in Scientific Reports, volume 5, →DOI:

(paleontology) A bird-like theropod dinosaur of the subfamily Dromaeosaurinae.


velociraptorine

In some most parsimonious trees the Liaoning dromaeosaurids form a clade, but in others various species are more closely related to the dromaeosaurine and velociraptorine clade.

Any theropod of the subfamily Velociraptorinae


unenlagiine

Similarly, the humerus of Zhenyuanlong is the shortest relative to the femur of not only any Liaoning dromaeosaurid, but any dromaeosaurid in general except for the very basal taxon Mahakala and the aberrant unenlagiine Austroraptor.

Any dinosaur of the subfamily Unenlagiinae.


paravian

We note that the difference forelimb:hindlimb ratio is within the range of intraspecific variation in two paravian taxa known from multiple specimens, Microraptor 17 and Archaeopteryx 19 20, and is therefore not likely to be a clearly distinguishing feature between Tianyuraptor and Zhanyuanlong .

Any birdlike dinosaur of the clade Paraves, dinosaurs more closely related to birds than to oviraptorosaurs.


casquehead

Any casquehead lizard (family Corytophanidae).


corytophanine

(herpetology (saurology)) Any lizard of the genus Corytophanes


dactyloid

Any lizard / anole of the family Dactyloidae


shinisaur

Chinese crocodile lizard
Chinese crocodile lizard

Any lizard of the genus Shinisaurus (Chinese crocodile lizard).


Chinese alligator

Chinese alligator (plural Chinese alligators)

Alligator sinensis
Alligator sinensis#Translingual

An alligator native to eastern China, Alligator sinensis.


amphisbaenian

Amphisbaenians lost their legs independently of the snake lineage and belong to their own distinct part of the squamate tree.

2016 July 13, Elsa Panciroli, “How did legless worm-lizards cross the Atlantic?”, in The Guardian:

(zoology) Any member of the Amphisbaenia, the clade of worm lizards.


bernissartiid

(zoology) Any extinct crocodile-like reptile in the family Bernissartiidae.


archosauriform

(zoology) Belonging to the Archosauriformes, a clade of diapsid reptiles.


paralligatorid

If the Hungarian specimen is from a paralligatorid, then it would be the first occurrence of the group in the European archipelago.

2015, Attila Ősi et al., “An enigmatic crocodyliform tooth from the bauxites of western Hungary suggests hidden mesoeucrocodylian diversity in the Early Cretaceous European archipelago”, in PeerJ, volume 3, →DOI:

(zoology) Any extinct neosuchian crocodyliform in the family Paralligatoridae


sebecosuchian

(zoology) Any of the Sebecosuchia, an extinct group of mesoeucrocodylian crocodyliforms.


flatback

A chelonid turtle, Natator depressus, with low-domed carapace, endemic to the continental shelf of Australia.


eureptile

From eu- + reptile, influenced by Eureptilia.

There are, however, reasons to believe that aquatic or semiaquatic habits were more widespread among eureptiles than traditionally assumed and that the exclusion of aquatic or semi-aquatic taxa biases the analyses.

2015 September 10, “Anatomy of the Enigmatic Reptile Elachistosuchus huenei Janensch, 1949 (Reptilia: Diapsida) from the Upper Triassic of Germany and Its Relevance for the Origin of Sauria”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:


pseudosuchian

Janensch considered Elachistosuchus a pseudosuchian archosaur and diagnosed it by small body size, the lack of a specialized body plan, and the presence of a large posttemporal fenestra and an alleged antorbital fenestra.

(zoology) Belonging to the Pseudosuchia.


pseudosuchian

(zoology) Any member of the Pseudosuchia.


clevosaur

For the early Mesozoic (Late Triassic) of South American, sphenodontian opisthodontians are known from northern Argentina and clevosaurs from south Brazil.

2015 September 11, “New Data on the Clevosaurus (Sphenodontia: Clevosauridae) from the Upper Triassic of Southern Brazil”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

An extinct sphenodontian reptile of the genus Clevosaurus.


camarasaurus

While it looks like a friendly little camarasaurus on the outside, Pleo has plenty of power on the inside.

2007 September 13, J. D. Biersdorfer, “Dinosaurs Return, in a 2.0 Version (but Were They Ever Really Gone?)”, in New York Times:


fence lizard

western fence lizard
western fence lizard

Any of several species of North American lizards in the genus Sceloporus, especially the eastern fence lizard (Sceloporus undulatus), the western fence lizard (Sceloporus occidentalis), and the southwestern fence lizard (Sceloporus cowlesii)


Kimberley death adder

Kimberley death adder (plural Kimberley death adders)

It looks like a pile of leaves, but the Kimberley death adder can deliver a bite which could result in paralysis and death.

2015 September 16, Kirstie McCrum, “New deadly snake species discovered is 'in the world's venomous top 10'”, in The Mirror:

Australia is famous for its enormous variety of toxic or venomous creatures, and now scientists have added a new snake to its roster: Acanthophis cryptamydros, or the Kimberley death adder (named after the region of Australia it comes from).

2015 October 1, Danny Lewis, “Yet Another Highly-Venomous Snake Discovered in Australia”, in Smithsonian:

The Kimberley death adder is roughly 24 inches (60 cm) long and has a diamond-shaped head.

2016 January 28, Sergio Prostak, “Top 20 New Species Discovered in 2015”, in Science News:

Fig. 5.11. Range of the Kimberley death adder, Acanthophis cryptamydros

2017, Peter Mirtschin, Arne Rasmussen, Scott Weinstein, Australia's Dangerous Snakes: Identification, Biology and Envenoming, →ISBN, page 76:

Any of species Acanthophis cryptamydros of Australian snake.


clevosaurid

Any extinct reptile in the family Clevosauridae; a clevosaur


megaraptorid

The skeleton of Australovenator wintonensis from the Cenomanian of Australia is among the most complete of any megaraptorid.

2015 September 15, “Forearm Range of Motion in Australovenator wintonensis (Theropoda, Megaraptoridae)”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

Any theropod dinosaur of the family †Megaraptoridae.


lyre snake

The distinctive V-shaped pattern on the snakes' heads is said to resemble a lyre.


caimanine

(zoology) Any member of the subfamily Caimaninae within the Alligatoridae.


boofhead tortoise

boofhead tortoise (plural boofhead tortoises)

From boofhead + tortoise, referring to the large head developed by the female in old age.

A small turtle, Emydura macquarii, of northern Australia.


Aesculapian snake

Aesculapian snake (plural Aesculapian snakes)

A European species of nonvenomous snake, Zamenis longissimus, associated with Asclepius (Roman counterpart: Aesculapius) in Ancient Greek mythology.


elongatoolithid

Unlike other elongatoolithid and prismatoolithid eggs, Elongatoolithus elongatus and Protoceratopsidovum minimum were classified into the covered nest type.

2015 November 26, “Eggshell Porosity Provides Insight on Evolution of Nesting in Dinosaurs”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

(paleontology) Any member of the oofamily Elongatoolithidae.


hylaeosaurus

A herbivorous ankylosaurian dinosaur that lived about 165 million years ago during the Cretaceous period


caudipterid

It is also consistent with the exhibition of less resting forelimb flexion in Caudipteridae than in other feathered theropods, because caudipterid forelimbs are shorter than those of most other feathered dinosaurs, eliminating the possibility of contact between feathers and the ground, hence also eliminating the need for tight forelimb folding.

2015 December 17, “Resting Orientations of Dinosaur Scapulae and Forelimbs: A Numerical Analysis, with Implications for Reconstructions and Museum Mounts”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

(zoology) Any of the †Caudipteridae, a family of oviraptorosaurian dinosaurs.


cerapodan

(zoology) Any dinosaur in the clade Cerapoda.


hadrosauriform

Clipping of translingual Hadrosauriformes

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Hadrosauriformes</i>

(zoology) Any ornithopod dinosaur in the Hadrosauriformes.


baryonychine

This contrasts with the more lateromedially angular quadrate ridge and the large quadrate foramen located at mid-height of the quadrates of baryonychines.

2016 January 7, “Morphofunctional Analysis of the Quadrate of Spinosauridae (Dinosauria: Theropoda) and the Presence of Spinosaurus and a Second Spinosaurine Taxon in the Cenomanian of North Africa.”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

Any theropod dinosaur of the subfamily Baryonychinae.


lepidosaurian

Additionally, some 143 studies utilized vertebrates as study organisms, with 30% evaluating lepidosaurians (i.e., snakes, lizards, amphisbaenians, Tuatara), whereas another 30% assessed amphibians.

2016 January 28, “Deconstructing a Species-Complex: Geometric Morphometric and Molecular Analyses Define Species in the Western Rattlesnake ( Crotalus viridis )”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

(zoology) Any member of the Lepidosauria.


microraptor

A small, four-winged paravian dinosaur of the genus Microraptor.


whip snake

Any of the slender snakes of diverse genera and species:

species Suta dwyeri, found in Australia from New South Wales to South Queensland


Okinawan habu

Protobothrops flavoviridis
Protobothrops flavoviridis#Translingual

Trimeresurus flavoviridis
Trimeresurus flavoviridis

Any member of either of two species of venomous pit viper found on the Ryukyu Islands of Japan.

Protobothrops flavoviridis (syn. Trimeresurus flavoviridis).


temple viper

Because of its abundance around the Temple of the Azure Clouds in Malaysia.

Tropidolaemus wagleri, a venomous pit viper native to Southeast Asia.


xenodontine

We characterized the skull morphology of 19 species of xenodontine snakes using geometric morphometric techniques, and used phylogenetic comparative methods to test the association between diet and skull morphology.

2016 February 18, “Are Diet Preferences Associated to Skulls Shape Diversification in Xenodontine Snakes?”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

(zoology) Belonging to a group of colubrid snakes with unusual teeth.


xenodontine

(zoology) Any snake of the subfamily Xenodontinae


brachylophosaurin

The left dentary of MOR 2919 is larger than any other brachylophosaurin dentary (Table 1 ), and preserves the complete series of 43 tooth rows.

2015 November 12, “A New Brachylophosaurin Hadrosaur (Dinosauria: Ornithischia) with an Intermediate Nasal Crest from the Campanian Judith River Formation of Northcentral Montana”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

Any hadrosaur of the tribe Brachylophosaurini.


doswellid

Any extinct archosauriform of the family †Doswelliidae


drepanosauromorph

The frequent plant leaves, small branches and cones (mainly belonging to conifers [20 ]), the spider Friularachne rigoi Dalla Vecchia and Selden 2013 [75 ], the drepanosauromorph Megalancosaurus preonensis, the protorosaurian Langobardisaurus pandolfii and a probable lepidosauromorph [76 ] were all allochthonous.

2015 November 12, “A Reappraisal of the Purported Gastric Pellet with Pterosaurian Bones from the Upper Triassic of Italy”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

Any reptile of the extinct clade †Drepanosauromorpha.


protorosaur

From scientific Latin Protorosaurus (genus name).

The large-sized protorosaur Tanystropheus had extremely elongated neck vertebrae and a neck more than two times the length of its trunk.

2012, Winand Brinkmann, Kenneth De Baets, editors, Paleontological Museum of the University of Zürich: Exhibition Guide, Paleontological Institute and Museum of the University of Zürich, →ISBN, page 76:

On the other side, there are about 28 chevrons in the long tail of the protorosaur Tanystropheus at least half of which are similar to element i (see [33 ]: Plate 1, Figure 37).

(paleontology) An extinct archosauromorph reptile of the order Protorosauria.


prismatoolithid

Elongatoolithid and prismatoolithid ootaxa are attributed to Oviraptorosauria [57 ,59 –64 ] and non-oviraptorosaur maniraptorans [46 ,65 ], respectively, based on eggshell microstructure similarities with eggs of known taxonomic identity.

Any fossil egg of the oofamily Prismatoolithidae.


side-blotched lizard

en-noun

side-blotched lizard (plural side-blotched lizards)


plateosaur

A plateosaurid dinosaur of the genus Plateosaurus that lived during the Late Triassic period.


ctenotus

From the genus name, translingual Ctenotus.


chaoyangsaurid

Any dinosaur of the family Chaoyangsauridae


pachycephalosaurian

Any dinosaur of the suborder Pachycephalosauria.


ankylopollexian

The general aspect of this tooth is similar to that seen in ankylopollexian ornithopods.

2015 December 17, “A New Sail-Backed Styracosternan (Dinosauria: Ornithopoda) from the Early Cretaceous of Morella, Spain”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

Any dinosaur of the clade Ankylopollexia


styracosternan

The recognition of Morelladon beltrani gen. et sp. nov. indicates that the Iberian Peninsula was home to a highly diverse medium to large bodied styracosternan assemblage during the Early Cretaceous.

Any dinosaur of the taxon †Styracosterna.


xenotyphlopid

Reptile categories were (1) turtles and tortoises, (2) typhlopid and xenotyphlopid snakes, (3) lamprophiid snakes, (4) iguanid lizards, (5) geckos, (6) skinks, (7) gerrhosaurids, and (8) chameleons.

2016 January 7, “Spatial Biodiversity Patterns of Madagascar's Amphibians and Reptiles”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:


unenlagiid

Although megaraptoran and unenlagiid theropods are also thought to have played an important role as medium to large-size predators, we were not able to include them in our analysis due to the small number of occurrences.

2016 February 2, “The “χ” of the Matter: Testing the Relationship between Paleoenvironments and Three Theropod Clades”, in PLOS ONE, →DOI:

Any theropod dinosaur of the genus Unenlagia


hydrophiine

(zoology) Any sea snake of the subfamily Hydrophiinae


fierce snake

A highly venomous snake, Oxyuranus microlepidotus.


monocled cobra

Naja kaouthia, a cobra of south and south-east Asia.


changeable lizard

changeable lizard (plural changeable lizards)

Calotes versicolor, an Asian agamid that can camouflage itself by changing colour.


alethinophidian

Any snake of the infraorder Alethinophidia


macrostomatan

The unique adaptations for the snake skull for ingesting large prey in more primitive macrostomatan snakes have been well documented.


hardim

The hardims are of an olive-green color shaded with black, and below a pale yellow.

1888, John Sterling Kingsley, The Riverside Natural History, volume 3, page 414:

The Stellio, sometimes called the Hardim by the Arabs, is a well-known Lizard inhabiting Northern Africa, Syria, and Greece.

1898, John George Wood, Animate Creation: Popular Edition of "Our Living World," a Natural History, volume 5:

(obsolete) Synonym of stellion (a kind of lizard)


lagerpetid

From the genus name Lagerpeton, from λαγώς (lagṓs, “hare”) + ἑρπετόν (herpetón, “reptile”).

(zoology) Any of the dinosauromorphs of the family Lagerpetidae.

lagerpétido

dinosauromorph of the family Lagerpetidae


uruguaysuchid

The tooth (MFGI V 2015.90.2.1.) from the Albian Alsópere Bauxite Formation, western Hungary, however, is ziphodont and closely resembles that of some peirosaurid, non-baurusuchian sebecosuchian, and uruguaysuchid crocodyliforms—all of which have been united into a single clade, Notosuchia ( Sereno et al., 2001 ; Pol et al., 2014 ).

2015, Attila Ősi et al., “An enigmatic crocodyliform tooth from the bauxites of western Hungary suggests hidden mesoeucrocodylian diversity in the Early Cretaceous European archipelago”, in PeerJ, volume 3, →DOI:

Any crocodyliform of the family †Uruguaysuchidae.


testudinoid

Clipping of translingual Testudinoidea. By surface analysis, Latin testūdō + -in- + -oid.

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Testudinoidea</i>

surf

The terrestrial mode of food uptake differs dramatically among and within the three testudinoid subgroups (see Bels, Davenport & Delheusy, 1997 ; Bels et al., 2008 ; Summers et al., 1998 ; Wochesländer, Hilgers & Weisgram, 1999 ; Natchev et al., 2009, present study).

2015, Nikolay Natchev et al., “Feeding behaviour in a ‘basal’ tortoise provides insights on the transitional feeding mode at the dawn of modern land turtle evolution”, in PeerJ, volume 3, →DOI:

Any turtle of the superfamily Testudinoidea.


many-banded krait

en-noun

many-banded krait (plural many-banded kraits)

Bungarus multicinctus
Bungarus multicinctus#Translingual

Bungarus multicinctus, a highly venomous striped elapid snake found in central and southern China and Southeast Asia.


paramacellodid

Clipping of translingual Paramacellodidae

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Paramacellodidae</i>

Any extinct scincomorph lizard of the family Paramacellodidae


sea krait

A venomous semi-aquatic elapid snake of the genus Laticauda.


Cape cobra

Naja nivea, a moderate-sized, highly venomous cobra inhabiting a wide variety of biomes across southern Africa.


rinatrix

From Late Latin rinatrix (in Bartholomaeus Anglicus), apparently a misreading of Lucan 9.720 et natrix (“and the water snake”).

Rinatrix is a Serpent which with enuenoming poysoneth ye water, so that into what cleare Fountaine or Riuer he swimmeth, he infecteth it.

Mountebank with thy pedantical action, / Rinatrix, bugle-ox, rhinoceros.

1613, John Marston, William Barksted, The Insatiate Countess, I.1:

(obsolete) A type of water snake formerly thought to poison water.


rainbow boa

A Central and South American snake with iridescent scales, Epicrates cenchria.


sand boa

Any of a number of snakes in subfamily Erycinae: genera Charina, Eryx, and Gongylophis


tree boa

A number of arboreal snakes in the family Boidae

A Madagascar tree boa (Sanzinia madagascariensis)


emerald tree boa

en-noun

emerald tree boa (plural emerald tree boas)

A bright green, tree-dwelling South American snake in either of two species,

Corallus batesii (formerly considered a single species).


ascalabotan

Scientists have made our work a bit easier by dividing living lizards into two major groups: the ascalabotans and the autarchoglossans.

1987, Arthur Rosenfeld, Exotic Pets, page 84:

(zoology) A squamate of the clade Ascalabota


autarchoglossan

Assemblages in mainland habitats that consist of species in different families and other higher order clades (e.g., those containing iguanians, gekkotans, and autarchoglossans) are much more complex.

2008, Laurie J. Vitt, Herpetology: An Introductory Biology of Amphibians and Reptiles:

Autarchoglossan families, if anything, have shifted away from ants (at least adult ants) and tend, with one exception, to eat fairly large prey.

2006, Eric R. Pianka, Lizards: Windows to the Evolution of Diversity, page 46:


platynotid

Autotomy has such an obvious survival value that it is interesting to inquire why the ability to perform has been lost, reduced, or never gained in such groups as agamids, some iguanids, chameleons, a few geckos and skinks, and all platynotids.

1995, Ambika Prasad Diwan, Embryology of Reptiles, page 150:

Mosaursaurids^([sic]) are fossil marine lizards (DeBraga and Carroll, 1993) part of the varanoid (platynotid) clade within Anguimorpha (Lee, 1997).

2001, Hiran M. Dutta, Vertebrate Functional Morphology:

A member of the clade Platynota of anguimorph lizards.


Dinosaurian

/ˌdʌɪnə(ʊ)ˈsɔːɹɪən/

One belonging to the taxonomic superorder or clade Dinosauria; a dinosaur.


desert tortoise

desert tortoise (plural desert tortoises)

(US) either of two species of tortoise native to the deserts of the southwest United States and northwestern Mexico, Gopherus agassizii and Gopherus morafkai


Kemp's ridley sea turtle

Kemp's ridley sea turtle (plural Kemp's ridley sea turtles)

Lepidochelys kempii, a species of sea turtle


butterfly adder

butterfly adder (plural butterfly adders)


parareptile

(zoology) Any member of subclass or clade †Parareptilia of extinct reptiles.


procolophonomorph

(zoology) Any member of the Procolophonomorpha, an order or clade of parareptiles that appeared during the Middle Permian.


lanthanosuchid

(zoology) Any member of the Lanthanosuchidae, an extinct family of procolophonomorph parareptiles.


pareiasaur

(paleontology) Any member of the Pareiasauridae, a family of large parareptiles from the Permian period.


lesbian lizard

So called because, despite reproducing asexually, and being an all-female species, the whiptail still engages in mating behavior with other females of its own species.

New Mexico whiptail
New Mexico whiptail#English

(informal) Synonym of New Mexico whiptail


nycteroleterid

Although Ivakhnenko (1987) suggests that nycteroleterids are closely related to pareiasaurs, a more recent analysis suggests that the two groups are only remotely related (Lee, 1995).

2003, Michael J. Benton, The Age of Dinosaurs in Russia and Mongolia, page 83:

(zoology) Any parareptile of the family Nycteroleteridae.


procolophonoid

The presence of an ossified extrastapes in Youngina, however, seems to support a less specialized hearing function than that of procolophonoids.

2016, Jennifer A. Clack, Evolution of the Vertebrate Ear: Evidence from the Fossil Record:

(zoology) Any parareptile of the superfamily Procolophonoidea.


sphenosuchian

(zoology) Any crocodylomorph of the Sphenosuchia.


leptonectid

Any ichthyosaur of the family Leptonectidae


ophthalmosaurine

Clipping of translingual Ophthalmosaurinae

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Ophthalmosaurinae</i>

Any ophthalmosaurid of the subfamily Ophthalmosaurinae


parvicursorine

Any dinosaur of the subfamily Parvicursorinae


platypterygiine

Any thunnosaur of the subfamily Platypterygiinae


thunnosaur

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Thunnosauria</i>

Any ichthyosaur of the clade Thunnosauria


thunnosaurian

The best-known early thunnosaurian is Stenopterygius, from the Early Jurassic (Toarcian) of England, France, Germany, Luxembourg, and Switzerland.

2019, Hans-Dieter Sues, The Rise of Reptiles: 320 Million Years of Evolution, page 98:

Any extinct ichthyosaur of the taxon Thunnosauria.


sheltopusik

From Russian желтопузик (želtopuzik), literally "yellow-bellied".

Pseudopus apodus, a large glass lizard found from southern Europe to Central Asia.


retic

Perhaps the simplest of the traits bred for is the perpetuation of a yellow head. Retics having this also often have a degree of brighter than normal yellow in their otherwise normal body pattern.

2002, Richard D. Bartlett, Patricia Bartlett, Designer Reptiles and Amphibians:


water adder

From Middle English water addre, watyradyr, watir edyr, alteration (see adder) of water neddyr, watyrnedyre, from Old English wæternædre, wæternǣdre, equivalent to water + adder. Cognate with Dutch wateradder (“wateradder”), German Wassernatter (“watersnake”).

Natrix natrix
Natrix natrix#Translingual

Any of several aquatic snakes (none of which are true adders) including, among others:

A non-venomous European ringed snake or water snake (Natrix natrix).


scolecophidian

Any blind snake of the infraorder Scolecophidia


coniasaur

Any extinct varanoid lizard of the genus Coniasaurus.


alligatorine

Any animal of the subfamily Alligatorinae


arthropterygium

Any ichthyosaur of the genus Arthropterygius


amphichelydian

Any extinct turtle of the suborder Amphichelydia


casichelydian

Any extinct turtle of the order Casichelydia


chamaeleontid

Any lizard of the clade Chamaeleontiformes


cryolophosaur

Any theropod of the genus Cryolophosaurus


crocodylotarsian

Any archosaur of the former clade Crocodylotarsi (now Pseudosuchia)


dortokid

Any extinct turtle of the family Dortokidae


worrel

The rat, called ichneumon, which has been fabled to destroy the crocodile, by leaping down it's throat and gnawing through it's belly; the cameleon; and the worrel, which is said to be affected by music; all are natives of Egypt.

1785, William Frederick Martyn, The Geographical Magazine; or, a New, Copious, Compleat, and Universal System of Geography, page 639:

Obsolete form of worral (“monitor lizard”).


Mary River turtle

en-noun

Mary River turtle (plural Mary River turtles)

Conservationists trying to save the Mary river turtle have had to resort to selling turtle chocolates and soliciting donations from the United Arab Emirates to try to help save the endangered reptile from extinction.

A species of turtle, Elusor macrurus, endemic to the Mary River in southeastern Queensland.


heterodontosaur

Any dinosaur of the genus Heterodontosaurus.


Wegner's glass lizard

Wegner's glass lizard (plural Wegner's glass lizards)

Currently, Wegner’s glass lizard is listed as data deficient by the IUCN Red List, which means scientists don’t have enough information to even determine if the species is at risk of extinction.

2018 March 20, Jeremy Hance, The Guardian:

A species of glass lizard, Ophisaurus wegneri, found in Sumatra.


ctenochasmatoid

Any pterosaur of the clade Ctenochasmatoidea


ornithocheiroid

Clipping of translingual Ornithocheiroidea

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Ornithocheiroidea</i>

Any pterosaur of the clade Ornithocheiroidea


Hermann's tortoise

en-noun

Hermann's tortoise (plural Hermann's tortoises)

Named after the French naturalist Johann Hermann.

A girl strokes a Hermann’s tortoise in a flat in Paris.

2018 May 25, Eric Hilaire, The Guardian:

A species of tortoise, Testudo hermanni, found throughout southern Europe.


marine iguana

Marine iguanas line the shores of the islands, and are usually seen sprawled over lava rocks near the sea.

1991, Martha Holmes, Sea Trek, BBC Books, page 44:

A species of iguana, Amblyrhynchus cristatus, native to the Galápagos Islands, that can forage in the water.


olive sea snake

olive sea snake (plural olive sea snakes)

Slithering amongst the luxuriant growth were olive sea snakes.

1991, Martha Holmes, Sea Trek, BBC Books, page 114:

A venomous species of sea snake, Aipysurus laevis.


bastard horn snake

bastard horn snake (plural not attested)

(US, dialectal, now rare) The common kingsnake.


common kingsnake

common kingsnake (countable and uncountable, plural common kingsnakes)

Lampropeltis getula, a harmless colubrid kingsnake endemic to much of warm temperate northern Mexico and the United States.


carcharodontosaurine

Any dinosaur of the subfamily Carcharodontosaurinae


pterosauromorph

Any extinct reptile of the clade Pterosauromorpha


hardun

Originally distributed from Arabia to western Turkey and on numerous islands of the Aegean Sea, more recently the hardun has been inadvertently transported to northern Greece, Corfu, and the vicinity of Alexandria (Egypt).

2013, Douglas M. Considine and Glenn D. Considine, Van Nostrand’s Scientific Encyclopedia, page 60:


house gecko

Any lizard in the genus Hemidactylus. Several species live in houses.


collared lizard

collared lizard (plural collared lizards)

Any lizard in genus Crotaphytus, native to arid parts of southwestern North America and having distinctive markings on the back behind the head.


leopard lizard

Any member of the genus Gambelia, spotted lizards native to arid regions of the western US and northern Mexico.


zebra-tailed lizard

zebra-tailed lizard (plural zebra-tailed lizards)

A lizard of southwestern US and northern Mexico deserts with black and white markings on its tail, of species Callisaurus draconoides.


fringe-toed lizard

fringe-toed lizard (plural fringe-toed lizards)

Any member of the genus Uma, sand-dwelling lizards of deserts in southwestern North America.


Vallarta mud turtle

Vallarta mud turtle (plural Vallarta mud turtles)

The Vallarta mud turtle, the largest specimens of which are 10 centimeters long, has only been found in a few human-created or human-affected habitats such as small streams and ponds found only around the resort town of Puerto Vallarta.

A species of mud turtle, Kinosternon vogti, endemic to the area around Puerto Vallarta in Mexico.


plateosaurian

Any sauropodomorph dinosaur of the clade Plateosauria


glass lizard

When it slithers through the grass, the legless glass lizard is indistinguishable from a snake.

2015 March 16, Andreas Wagner, “Possible creatures”, in Aeon:

A member of the genus Ophisaurus, comprising some fifteen species of legless lizards.


Aldabra giant tortoise

Aldabra giant tortoise (plural Aldabra giant tortoises)

In 2004, an Aldabra giant tortoise washed ashore in Tanzania, 740 km from home (Gerlach et al., 2006).

20178, Hanneke Meijer, The Guardian, 1 March

A species of giant tortoise, Aldabrachelys gigantea, found on the islands of the Aldabra atoll.


eosauropterygian

Any extinct reptile of the order Eosauropterygia


pistosaur

Any extinct reptile of the genus Pistosaurus


pistosauroid

Any extinct marine reptile of the clade Pistosauroidea


russellosaurine

Any extinct marine reptile of the subfamily Russellosaurina


placodont

From placo- + -odont, after scientific Latin Placodus (genus name).

The dentition of placodonts was very interesting, as they all had large crushing teeth on the palate.

2012, Winand Brinkmann, Kenneth De Baets, editors, Paleontological Museum of the University of Zürich: Exhibition Guide, Paleontological Institute and Museum of the University of Zürich, →ISBN, page 74:

An extinct marine reptile of the order Placodontia.


rauisuchian

In Triassic times, when rauisuchians lived, the continents were still united in a large, coherent landmass, the supercontinent Pangea.

2012, Winand Brinkmann, Kenneth De Baets, editors, Paleontological Museum of the University of Zürich: Exhibition Guide, Paleontological Institute and Museum of the University of Zürich, →ISBN, page 79:

(paleontology) An extinct reptile of the taxon Rauisuchia, which lived during the Triassic.


house lizard

Hemidactylus frenatus
Hemidactylus frenatus#Translingual

Common house gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus), native to southeast Asia.


common house gecko

common house gecko (plural common house geckos)


thescelosaur

So far, Druckenmiller and his team have dug up species from seven different dino families: from big duck-billed dinos, ceretopsians, and tyrannosaurs to smaller thescelosaurs, leptoceratops, dromaeosaurs, and troodontids.

2021 September 21, Karen Hopkin, “Dinosaurs Lived—and Made Little Dinos—in the Arctic”, in Scientific American:

Any dinosaur of the subfamily Thescelosaurinae.


pteranodontian

Any ornithocheiroid pterosaur of the clade Pteranodontia


deinonychosaurian

Any theropod dinosaur of the clade Deinonychosauria


hawksbill sea turtle

hawksbill sea turtle (plural hawksbill sea turtles)

Eretmochelys imbricata
Eretmochelys imbricata#Translingual

Eretmochelys imbricata, a critically endangered sea turtle.


racerunner

Any of a group of lizards, of the family Teiidae, native to the Americas.

Any of a group of lizards, of the genera Eremias or Pseuderemias


globidontan

Any alligatoroid of the clade Globidonta


sphenodont

(zoology) Any member of the order Sphenodontida


protosuchian

Any crocodyliform of the clade Protosuchia


sphagesaurid

Any mesoeucrocodylian of the family Sphagesauridae


drepanosaur

Paths scratched in the mosses on tree trunks mark the presence of drepanosaurs, another of Madygen's evolutionary oddities.

2022, Thomas Halliday, Otherlands, Penguin, published 2023, page 161:

An extinct reptile of the family Drepanosauridae.


scansoriopterigid

Any dinosaur of the family Scansoriopterygidae


spinosauroid

Any dinosaur of the superfamily Spinosauroidea


crayfish snake

So called because they often eat crayfish.

Certain of the semiaquatic snakes of the genus Regina.


carnotaurine

Any dinosaur of the family Carnotaurinae


edmontosaur

Any hadrosaurid dinosaur of the genus Edmontosaurus.


salipenter

Borrowed from Guyanese Creole English [Term?].

A species of the polecat, and another of the fox, are destructive to the Indian's poultry; while the opossum, the guana, and salempenta, afford him a delicious morsel.

1825, Charles Waterton, “First Journey”, in Wanderings in South America, the North-west of the United States, and the Antilles, in the Years 1812, 1816, 1820, and 1824. […], London: Printed [by A[ugustus] Applegath] for J. Mawman, […], →OCLC, page 8:

The Salempenta or El Mateo, measuring from the tail to the nose three feet, is exceedingly ugly; colour chiefly a brownish green, with yellow spots; and marked in the most extraordinary hieroglyphical manner; [...] The Salempenta has (like the Chameleon, and several others of the same species) in some measure the faculty of changing its colour when in any way excited, either through fright or anger; [...]

1834, R[obert] Montgomery Martin, “British Guyana— …”, in History of the British Colonies. … In Five Volumes, volume II (Possessions in the West Indies), London: Cochrane and M‘Crone, […], →OCLC, page 104:

A large land-lizard, called the Salempenta, or Salipanta, is likewise common, and is said to destroy fowls.

1869, Greville John Chester, “British Guiana”, in Transatlantic Sketches in the West Indies, South America, Canada, and the United States, London: Smith, Elder & Co., […], →OCLC, page 131:

Salempenta (Teius Teguexin).—This fine lizard is sometimes called the Safeguard, because it is supposed to give notice of the approach of the alligator, just as the African monitors are believed to warn travellers against the crocodile. [...] Like the iguana, the Salempenta affords very delicate food, which is thought to resemble the flesh of a very delicate young chicken. New comers are at first averse to eating a lizard of any description, but they very soon find out their mistake, and would even prefer an iguana or Salempenta cutlet to a chicken.

1879, J[ohn] G[eorge] Wood, “Explanatory Index”, in Charles Waterton, Wanderings in South America, the North-west of the United States, and the Antilles, in the Years 1812, 1816, 1820, and 1824. […] Edited, with Biographical Introduction and Explanatory Index, new edition, London: Macmillan and Co., →OCLC, page 467:

How far foxes, ocelots, hawks, yellow-tail and other snakes, and salempentas, contribute towards keeping down rats by destroying them for food is not easily determined. That the last named is an excellent ratter, I know from actual observation.

1894, S. R. Cochran, “Some Enemies of Our Cane-fields”, in James Rodway, editor, Timehri: The Journal of the Royal Agricultural and Commercial Society of British Guiana, volume VIII (New Series), Demerara: J. Thomson, →OCLC, page 104:

I know very little about the details of the regular diet of salempentas, but fowls' and lizards' eggs and chickens are favorites. My nephew wounded a plover and as it was only slightly hurt, he tethered it with a string under the house. In a short time he found a large salempenta on the end of the string, having swallowed the bird.

1919, William Beebe, quoting Edgar Beckett, “Field Notes on the Lizards of Kartabo, British Guiana, and Caripito, Venezuela. Part 3. Teiidae, Amphisbaenidae and Scincidae.”, in [Henry] Fairfield Osborn [Jr.], editor, Zoologica: Scientific Contributions of the New York Zoological Society, volume 30, part 1, New York, N.Y.: New York Zoological Society, published 27 April 1945, →OCLC, page 25, column 2:

Lizards usually have white flesh, tasting more like fowl than anything else. The Salempenta lizard of Guiana, which is amphibious and unpleasant to behold, is a favourite dish of the Indians.

1922, Chambers’s Journal, volume XCIX, part 139, London, Edinburgh: W[illiam] & R[obert] Chambers […], →OCLC, page 421, column 1:

I could sting you for a bounty of reparations, but keep your money and let me talk like dis and dat, let me say I come from the tribe of Bongo-Bongo; that I am germane and first-cousin to jungle beasts like anthropophagi, hermaphrodites, salipenters and all the other creatures dreamt of by your writers or discovered by your travellers.

1999, David Dabydeen, A Harlot’s Progress, London: Jonathan Cape, →ISBN, page 5:

Along its bank a salipenter, the colour of the mud, sped furtively, its eyes on some domestic fowls picking at the verge of the mud hole.

2004, Deloris Craig, “The Crossing”, in Labba and Creek Water Stories from the Caribbean, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: Nelson Thornes, →ISBN, page 118:

Their [iguanas'] eggs and meat are food resources for predators such as salipenter (Tegu lizard), hawks, vultures, and humans.

2012 January 22, “Iguana”, in Stabroek News, Georgetown, Guyana: Guyana Publications, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2012-02-06:

Slowly, he peeped from behind his hiding place just in time to see a black-and-white furry object dash behind a salipenter.

2015 October 28, Rohan Singh, chapter 1, in Adventures of Suliman and the Sandopie, [Bloomington, Ind.]: Xlibris, →ISBN:

Fruits and a ‘salipenter (large lizard)’ were what he used to help with his hunger.

2016 August 11, Neil Primus, “Goings and Comings”, in Nigel Williams, editor, Guyana Chronicle, Georgetown, Guyana: Guyana National Newspapers, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2020-03-21:

(Guyana) A tegu lizard (genus Tupinambis), especially the gold tegu (Tupinambis teguixin).


poposauroid

Any pseudosuchian of the clade Poposauroidea


megaraptoran

A carnivorous theropod dinosaur of the clade Megaraptora


massopodan

Any sauropodomorph dinosaur of the clade Massopoda


neoichthyosaur

Any ichthyosaur of the former clade Neoichthyosauria


aegyptosuchid

Any extinct crocodyliform of the family Aegyptosuchidae


avemetatarsalian

(zoology) A member of the Avemetatarsalia clade of archosaurs which resemble birds more than crocodiles.


neoplesiosaurian

Any plesiosaurian of the disputed clade Neoplesiosauria


plesiosauroid

Any marine plesiosaur of the superfamily Plesiosauroidea


avetheropodan

Any avian theropod of the clade Avetheropoda


eudromaeosaur

Any dinosaur of the clade Eudromaeosauria


lindholmemydid

Any extinct turtle of the family Lindholmemydidae


neornithischian

Any dinosaur of the clade Neornithischia


saurolophid

Any dinosaur of the family Saurolophidae


rhamphorhynchine

Any pterosaur of the genus Rhamphorhynchus.


tapejarine

Any pterosaur of the subfamily Tapejarinae


thalassodromine

Any pterosaur of the subfamily Thalassodrominae


necrosaur

Any lizard of the extinct family Necrosauridae


pliosauroid

Any pliosaur of the suborder Pliosauroidea


teleosaurian

(zoology) Any member of the genus Teleosaurus.


geosaurine

Patrolling the open water between the tropical islands and slinking into lagoons and bays are geosaurines, smooth-skinned crocodiles as large as an orca.

2022, Thomas Halliday, Otherlands, Penguin, published 2023, page 137:

Any extinct metriorhynchid crocodyliform of the subfamily Geosaurinae.


thalattosuchian

Any extinct crocodylomorph of the suborder Thalattosuchia


basilisk lizard

basilisk lizard (plural basilisk lizards)

My first impression was that the behavior was identical to that of Central American basilisk lizards (Basiliscus) or the South American lizard Uranoscodon, both of which run across water when approached.

2006, Eric R. Pianka, Lizards: Windows to the Evolution of Diversity, page 73:

A tree-dwelling lizard of the genus Basiliscus.


opisthodontian

Any extinct rhynchocephalian of the clade Opisthodontia


pleurosaur

Any extinct reptile of the genus Pleurosaurus


striped whipsnake

striped whipsnake (plural striped whipsnakes)

A species of snake (Masticophis taeniatus)


dinosauroid

Blend of dinosaur + humanoid, coined by American-Canadian paleontologist Dale Russell in 1982.

coin

(science fiction) A hypothetical descendant of troodontid dinosaurs with human-like intelligence and physiology.


sand goanna

A large monitor lizard native to Australia (Varanus gouldii).


bungarra

Our jam-tree, too, as Villiers knows, / Adds zest to boiled bungarra; / But p'r'aps he doesn't also know, / Though jam-trees in profusion grow, / We're also "Canning-Jarrah"

1902, A Mingled Yarn, March 30, The Sun, p. 4

On nearing the spot they were surprised to see a 5ft., or more, bungarra with its head through the hand grip of the bag.

1923, A Thirsty Bungarra, April 5, The Mullewa Mail, p. 3

This one bungarra, an' he lookin' for berry bush. But he know that fella eagle watchin' him and he know that fella is cunnin' fella.

1986, Jack Davis, “No Sugar”, in Heiss & Minter, editor, Macquarie PEN Anthology of Aboriginal Literature, Allen & Unwin, published 2008, page 61:

(Australia) One of several species of large Australian monitor lizard, usually Varanus gouldii or Varanus panoptes.


racehorse goanna

en-noun

racehorse goanna (plural racehorse goannas)


saurornitholestine

Any dinosaur of the subfamily Saurornitholestinae


booid

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Booidea</i>


colubroidean

Any snake of the superfamily Colubroidea


sphenodontine

Any tuatara (reptile resembling lizards) of the family Sphenodontidae


ungaliophiine

Any booid snake of the subfamily Ungaliophiinae


gnathosaurine

Any pterosaur of the subfamily Gnathosaurinae


lonchodectid

A pterosaur of the family Lonchodectidae


neoazhdarchian

Any pterosaur of the clade Neoazhdarchia


ankylosaurine

Any dinosaur of the subfamily Ankylosaurinae


dermochelyoid

Any sea turtle of the clade Dermochelyoidae


pelomedusoid

Any freshwater turtle of the superfamily Pelomedusoidea


stumptail

In the yellow sand of the track ahead a stumpy tail lizard lies inert.

1965, Mudrooroo, Wild Cat Falling, HarperCollins, published 2001, page 129:

An Australian lizard, Tiliqua rugosa, that has a stumpy tail.


zonosaurine

Pertaining to the lizard subfamily Zonosaurinae, the zonosaurs.


pilosaurid

Any extinct marine reptile of the family Pliosauridae


leptocleidian

Any plesiosauroid of the clade Leptocleidia


spinosaur

Since then, all that has been discovered are some specimens of related smaller spinosaurs, as well as some isolated bones of Spinosaurus itself.

Any theropod dinosaur of the genus Spinosaurus.


eusauropterygian

Any extinct aquatic reptile of the superorder Eusauropterygia


loggerhead musk turtle

en-noun

loggerhead musk turtle (plural loggerhead musk turtles)

Sternotherus minor, native to the southern US, having a head larger in size relative to its body than similar turtles.


rock lizard

Any of the small lizards, of several genera in family Lacertidae, that dwell in rocky places.

Any of the species of genus Petrosaurus in family Phrynosomatidae in suborder Iguania.


toxicoferan

Any squamate reptile of the clade Toxicofera


parasaurolophin

Any hadrosaurid of the tribe Parasaurolophini


horned adder

Any of certain venomous South African vipers


horned viper

Cerastes spp., North African desert vipers.

Bitis caudalis (horned puff adder, horned adder), of south-west Africa.

Vipera ammodytes
Vipera ammodytes#Translingual


horned snake

Synonym of horned viper (Cerastes cornutus)


horned toad

A South American frog of the genus Ceratophrys


baracromian

Any of the clade †Baracromia of extinct ichthyosaurs.


neoichthyosaurian

Any ichthyosaur of the clade Neoichthyosauria


ophthalmosaur

Any of the genus †Ophthalmosaurus of ichthyosaurs.


parvipelvian

Relating to ichthyosaurs of the clade Parvipelvia


parvipelvian

Any ichthyosaur of the clade Parvipelvia


champsosaur

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Champsosaurus</i>

Somewhere out there, predatory lizards called chapsosaurs and large alligator-like crocodilians lurk, mostly submerged in the water, snapping at fish.

2022, Thomas Halliday, Otherlands, Penguin, published 2023, page 107:

Any extinct diapsid reptile of the genus †Champsosaurus.


necrosaurid

Any extinct varanoid lizard of the family †Necrosauridae


neodiapsid

Clipping of translingual Neodiapsida, from neo- + diapsid.

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Neodiapsida</i>


tomistomine

A crocodylian of the subfamily Tomistominae, which includes one living species, the false gavial, and many extinct species.


false gavial

A freshwater crocodilian native to Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo, Sumatra, and Java, Tomistoma schlegelii.


paracryptodiran

Any extinct turtle of the infraorder †Paracryptodira


pleurosternid

Any extinct turtle of the family †Pleurosternidae


alderman lizard

en-noun

alderman lizard (plural alderman lizards)


colubroid

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Colubroidea</i>

Any snake of the superfamily Colubroidea


erycine

Some dwarf boas and erycines climb occasionally, and arboreal specializations have evolved independently in Green Pythons (Morelia viridis), Pacific Tree Boas (C. bibronii), neotropical tree boas (Corallus), and Vine Boas (Epicrates gracilis).

1997, Harry W. Greene, Snakes: The Evolution of Mystery in Nature, page 169:

Any nonvenomous snake of the subfamily Erycinae.


pseudoxyrhophiine

Any lamprophiid snake of the subfamily Pseudoxyrhophiinae


mahajangasuchid

Any extinct crocodyliform of the family †Mahajangasuchidae


green mamba

Compound of green + mamba, from Zulu imamba.

Dendroaspis angusticeps, a venomous snake native to Africa, the common mamba, eastern green mamba.

Dendroaspis viridis, a venomous snake native to western Africa; the western green mamba.


caseasaur

Any theropod dinosaur of the genus †Caseosaurus


rainbow snake

A large, aquatic, nonvenomous colubrid snake found in the southeastern United States, Farancia erytrogramma, especially subspecies Farancia erytrogramma erytrogramma.


baurusuchine

Any extinct baurusuchid crocodyliform of the subfamily †Baurusuchinae


night snake

The North American snake Hypsiglena torquata


archaeopterodactyloid

Any pterosaur of the infraorder Archaeopterodactyloidea


jiboya

Borrowed from Portuguese jiboia, borrowed from Old Tupi îyboîa, from Proto-Tupi-Guarani *jɨβoj.

etymon

[…] the largest animal of this kind, which has been brought into Europe, is but thirty-six feet long : the most usual length however of the jiboya is about twenty feet, and the thickness in proportion.

1820, Richard Paul Jodrell, Philology on the English Language

Prince Maximilian of Neu Wied tells us that the experienced hunter laughs when asked whether the jiboya attacks and devours man.

1886, Georg Hartwig, The Tropical World: Aspects of Man and Nature in the Equatorial Regions of the Globe, page 301

The Indians kept them in huge wooden boxes, and for a small tip, five or six boys would take out the gigantic sucuris, anacondas that live in water, and then some jiboyas of a similar size, but that are primarily land creatures.

2011, Carlos Prieto, The Adventures of a Cello: Revised Edition, with a New Epilogue, University of Texas Press


pteranodontoid

Clipping of translingual Pteranodontoidea

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Pteranodontoidea</i>

Any pterosaur of the clade †Pteranodontoidea.


elasmosaur

It is the first time in Australia the head and body of an elasmosaur, a type of plesiosaur, has been found in one piece.

2022 December 6, Rachael Merritt, “Australia's first complete plesiosaur fossil discovered in outback Queensland”, in ABC News:

Any plesiosaur of the genus Elasmosaurus.


lampropeltine

Any colubrid snake of the tribe Lampropeltini


red-bellied black snake

en-noun

red-bellied black snake (plural red-bellied black snakes)

A red-bellied black snake moves through her mind, sliding through the grass.

2015, Charlotte Wood, The Natural Way of Things, Allen & Unwin, published 2018, page 99:

A snake, Pseudechis porphyriacus, of eastern Australia.


plated lizard

A lizard from the family Gerrhosauridae, native to Africa.


albertosaur

Any dinosaur of the genus †Albertosaurus


eupleurodiran

Any true turtle of the suborder Pleurodira


dragon lizard

Dragon lizards include frill-necked lizards and thorny devils. They are distinct from other lizards by being spiky, rather than smooth and shiny, and from the unique formation of their teeth.

2019 May 24, Calla Wahlquist, The Guardian:

A member of the Agamidae family of iguanian lizards.


Christmas Island whiptail skink

Christmas Island whiptail skink (plural Christmas Island whiptail skinks)

Christmas Island whiptail skinks (plural)

The Christmas Island whiptail-skink or forest skink (Emoia nativitatis), which is listed as critically endangered under the Australian Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act, is listed as extinct on the IUCN Red List.

A species of skink, Emoia nativitatis, native to Christmas Island.


blue-bellied black snake

blue-bellied black snake (plural blue-bellied black snakes)

A snake of species Pseudechis guttatus, of eastern Australia.


proterochampsian

Any extinct reptile of the clade †Proterochampsia


ichthyosauromorph

Any extinct marine reptile of the clade †Ichthyosauromorpha


big-headed turtle

big-headed turtle (plural big-headed turtles)

An Asian turtle of species Platysternon megacephalum.


cetiosaur

Any sauropod dinosaur of the genus †Cetiosaurus


river jack

The venomous African viper Bitis nasicornis.


rhomaleosaurid

Any plesiosaur of the family †Rhomaleosauridae


phytosaurian

Any extinct reptile of the order †Phytosauria


sphenodontian

Any lizard-like reptile in the rhynchocephalian suborder Sphenodontia, whose only living representatives are the tuataras.


trilophosaur

An allokotosaur of the order †Trilophosauria


allokotosaur

An extinct reptile of the clade †Allokotosauria


sand viper

Any of various snakes:
horned viper (Vipera ammodytes)


neotheropodan

Any theropod dinosaur of the clade Neotheropoda


sand skink

An ocellated skink (Chalcides ocellatus), found in sandy places in southern Europe.


spinosaurine

Any theropod dinosaur of the subfamily Spinosaurinae


loricatan

suf

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Loricata</i>


pennaraptoran

Any member of the clade Pennaraptora, which includes birds and some of their extinct maniraptoran relatives.


rhabdodontomorphan

Any dinosaur of the clade †Rhabdodontomorpha


angonoka

Astrochelys yniphora, a tortoise endemic to Madagascar having a highly domed light-brown carapace with prominent growth rings on each scute.


geometric tortoise

en-noun

geometric tortoise (plural geometric tortoises)

Tortoises of South Africa, having a strong carapace with distinctive geometric patterns

Any of the species Psammobates geometricus of South African tortoises with radial black and yellow markings.

Any of the species of genus Psammobates.

serrated tortoise (Psammobates oculifer, tent tortoise, Psammobates geometricus


nothosauroid

Any extinct sauropterygian reptile of the order †Nothosauroidea


scansoriopterygid

Any maniraptoran dinosaur of the family †Scansoriopterygidae


chaoyangopterid

Any pterosaur of the family †Chaoyangopteridae


sand snake

Any of a number of other snakes found in sandy areas


sphenomorphine

Any lizard of the subfamily Sphenomorphinae


snake fear

The present writer is inclined to think that cat-fear is analogous to snake-fear.

1908, The Scrap Book, volume 5, page 556:

All groups would demonstrate reductions in snake fear during treatment.

1966, Abstracts of Dissertations and Theses, page 51:

[…] it is meaningful to consider differences between high and low snake fear groups in general, rather than considering each separate measure of fear individually.

1970, Jean Tronick Barnett, Development of Children's Fear: The Relationship Between Three Systems of Fear Measurement, page 34:

There was no snake fear in infant primates (Lorenz 1971) or in human infants up to 2 years old; in humans caution appeared by age 3% and definite fear by age 4 (Jones & Jones 1928), while fear increased from age 4 to 6 (Morris & Morris 1965).

1987, Isaac Marks, Fears, Phobias and Rituals: Panic, Anxiety, and Their Disorders:

His snakefear if anything was more unhealthy than healthy, carrying with it an almost uncontrollable tendency to freeze into a panic-stricken target.

1998, James Jones, The Thin Red Line, page 52:

Intense snake fear is prevalent in both humans and other primates. Humans and monkeys learn snake fear more easily than fear of most other stimuli through direct or vicarious conditioning (Ohman and Mineka, 2003).

A well-known research example is the use of Fear Thermometer ratings during behavioral approach tasks in the early snake-fear desensitization experiments.

2012, Alan S. Bellack, Michel Hersen, Handbook of Clinical Behavior Therapy with Adults, page 29:

Presumably, when preparedness for snake fear was being naturally selected, delaying one's fearresponse while one drew a distinction between poisonous and nonpoisonous snakes was not the most adaptive way to respond to the situation of suddenly coming across a snake.

2012, Allan V. Horwitz, PhD, Jerome C. Wakefield, DSW, PhD, All We Have to Fear: Psychiatry's Transformation of Natural Anxieties into Mental Disorders:


apatosaurine

Any sauropod of the subfamily †Apatosaurinae


aigialosaurid

Any extinct lizard of the family †Aigialosauridae


dolichosaurid

Any extinct aquatic varanoid lizard of the family †Dolichosauridae


eubaenine

Any extinct turtle of the baenid subfamily †Eubaeninae


hoplocercine

Any lizard of the genus Hoplocercus (sometimes of the family Hoplocercidae)


megatheropod

Juvenile T. rexes were light and agile before they leveled up into the adults we’re more familiar with. […] Other megatheropods, including abelisaurs and tarbosaurs, also grew from turkey-like hatchlings to bus-sized behemoths over the course of their lives.

2021 February 25, Cara Giaimo, “The Outsized Influence of Teen T. Rex and Other Young Dinosaurs”, in The New York Times:

(zoology) Any theropod dinosaur that exceeds 3000 kilograms in weight, and 9 meters in length.


mugger crocodile

mugger crocodile (plural mugger crocodiles)

A crocodile of species Crocodylus palustris


monofenestratan

Any pterosaur of the clade Monofenestrata


mamushi

A species of pit viper, Gloydius blomhoffii


pelagosaur

From Latin pelagus from Ancient Greek πελαγικός (pelagikós), from πέλαγος (pélagos, “sea”) + -saur.

In still older formations, such as the Lower Oolites and Lias, there were, however, many long-snouted crocodiles, such as the steneosaurs (Steneosaurus) and pelagosaurs (Pelagosaurus), in which the socket of the eye is divided from the lower temporal fossa by a bony bar, as shown in the figure on p. 13.

1896, Richard Lydekker, Reptiles and fishes, page 32:

SINCE, aflap o'er some dim Jurassic prairie, Pterodactyl seized on pelagosaur; In heraldry-book and bestiary Have been limned the beasts of the days of yore.

1915, Josiah Gilbert Holland, Richard Watson Gilder, The Century: A Popular Quarterly - Volume 89, page 312:

The order Crocodilia comprised, besides terrestrial forms, extinct marine crocodiles such as the genus mystriosaur and the pelagosaur—both lower jurassic forms (one hundred and fifty million years ago).

1969, Rodolfo Riascos Llinás, Neurobiology of Cerebellar Evolution and Development, page 431:

A complication not found in eusuchians occurs in some marine mesosuchians (i.e., mystriosaurs, pelagosaurs), in which the eustachian system may have been connected with the nasal passages, possibly a hydrostatic adaptation for protection of the auditory organs in diving animals (Antunes, 1967b).

1973, Carl Gans, Thomas Sturges Parsons, Biology of the Reptilia, page 278:

Any of the extinct crocodile-like animals of genus †Pelagosaurus which lived during the Jurassic period.


desmatosuchian

Any extinct archosaur of the genus Desmatosuchus


lepidosaurid

Any reptile of the superorder Lepidosauria


aeolosaurian

Any extinct titanosaur of the clade †Aeolosaurini


aeolosaurid

Any extinct titanosaur of the genus †Aeolosaurus


pareiasaurian

Any extinct parareptile of the clade †Pareiasauria


Yangihissar gecko

Yangihissar gecko (plural Yangihissar geckos)


atractaspidine

Any snake of the subfamily Atractaspidinae


calamariid

Any reed snake of the family Calamariidae


pseudoxyrhophiid

Any lamprophiid snake of the family Pseudoxyrhophiidae


pseudoxenodontid

Any colubrid snake of the family Pseudoxenodontidae


sibynophiid

Any colubrid snake of the subfamily Sibynophiinae


thalassemydid

Any extinct sea turtle of the family †Thalassemydidae


spectacled caiman

spectacled caiman (plural spectacled caimans)

Caiman crocodilus
Caiman crocodilus#Translingual

A crocodilian native to the warmer parts of Latin America, Caiman crocodilus, which, despite the specific epithet, is more closely related to alligators than crocodiles.


geckolet

Any of various small geckos in the Sphaerodactylus genus


anchisaur

Any member of the Anchisauria, a clade of sauropodomorph dinosaurs that lived from the Late Triassic to the Late Cretaceous in North America, Africa, and South America.


nope rope

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-nope rope.wav

Chosen for the rhyme. Rope suggests the snake's shape and nope that it inspires fear or aversion, prompting someone to nope out.

There are tons of danger noodles, nope ropes, and long bois throughout our streams, our forests, and our backyards;[…]

2019, David A. Steen, Secrets of Snakes: The Science beyond the Myths, Texas A&M University Press, →ISBN, page 4:

The next time you're startled by a nope rope in your yard, perhaps you can appreciate the remarkable way it moves without limbs or even the way its mouth quirks up in what could be called a smile with a certain stretch of the imagination.

2020, Erica Wright, Snake, Bloomsbury Publishing USA, →ISBN:


danger noodle

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-danger noodle.wav

From the jocular likening of the long, thin, tubular shape of a snake to a noodle, with the "danger" referencing the threats posed by venomous and constricting species.

[…] but you can also feel free to base your decision entirely on the emotional reaction you want to elicit from your players: Do you want icky-creepy-get-it-away-from-me (one square full of writhing danger noodles), moderate freakout (four crocs), or full-scale panic attack (eight king cobras)?

2019, Keith Ammann, The Monsters Know What They're Doing: Combat Tactics for Dungeon Masters, Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 36:

Yeah, right. The only thing I was going to become acquainted with was a one-way bus ticket to Nopeville. I was not sharing any kind of magical bond with this danger noodle.

2019, Bethany Hoeflich, “Soul Bonds are a Witch”, in A Bond of Words: 29 Short Stories, Scout Media, →ISBN, page 119:

Despite their fierce reputation, rattlesnakes (a.k.a. danger noodles) are rather shy and retiring, and they will avoid you at all costs.

2019, Scott Turner, Hike the Parks: Joshua Tree National Park: Best Day Hikes, Walks, and Sights, Mountaineers Books, →ISBN, page 44:


ornithocheiromorph

Clipping of translingual Ornithocheiromorpha

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Ornithocheiromorpha</i>

(paleontology) a member of the clade Ornithocheiromorpha.


mabouya

Any of various skinks of the genus Eutropis.


tarbosaur

From the genus name Tarbosaurus, formed with -saur.

(zoology) A tyrannosaurid dinosaur of the genus Tarbosaurus from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia and China.


bockadam

Any of various snakes of the family Homalopsidae.


lashtail

Any of various agamid lizards having long, thin tails.


jacky dragon

A species of agamid lizard, Amphibolurus muricatus, native to south-eastern Australia.


swamplands lashtail

en-noun

swamplands lashtail (plural swamplands lashtails)

northern water dragon
northern water dragon


northern water dragon

northern water dragon (plural northern water dragons)

A species of agamid lizard, Tropicagama temporalis, native to northern Australia, New Guinea, and southeastern Indonesia.


water dragon

Any of various agamid lizards of eastern Asia and Australasia, including the genera Physignathus, Intellagama, and Tropicagama, all of subfamily Amphibolurinae.


viperess

A female viper (snake, or treacherous/malignant person)


mud turtle

Any of the genus Kinosternon of small aquatic turtles of the Americas.


thalassochelydian

Any extinct turtle of the clade †Thalassochelydia


Futsing wolf snake

Futsing wolf snake (plural Futsing wolf snakes)

bor

Chinese 福清白環蛇 /福清白环蛇

The Futsing Wolf Snake is a terrestrial species often hunting in forested areas or water culverts at higher elevations. It is extremely rare in Hong Kong. A less common encounter for most given its rarity and nocturnal nature, it is possible though very unlikely to bump into one on the trail and if so they should be give a wide berth and left alone due to similar appearance with the deadly Many Banded Krait.

n.d., Adam Francis, Robert Ferguson, “Futsing Wolf Snake — Lycodon futsingensis”, in HongKongSnakeID.com, archived from the original on 2022-12-24:

Lycodon futsingensis
Lycodon futsingensis#Translingual


small-scaled snake

en-noun

small-scaled snake (plural small-scaled snakes)


eastern water dragon

eastern water dragon (plural eastern water dragons)

A subspecies of agamid lizard, Intellagama lesueurii lesueurii, native to coastal eastern Australia (from Cooktown southwards to central New South Wales).


Australian water dragon

Australian water dragon (plural Australian water dragons)

A species of agamid lizard, Intellagama lesueurii, native to eastern Australia (New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria).


Gippsland water dragon

Gippsland water dragon (plural Gippsland water dragons)

A subspecies of agamid lizard, Intellagama lesueurii howittii, native to coastal eastern Australia (from central New South Wales southwards to the Gippsland region of Victora).


elasmosaurine

An elasmosaurid of the subfamily Elasmosaurinae


aristonectine

Any plesiosaur of the clade Aristonectinae


jacuaru

Synonym of tegu (“South American lizard”)


macajuel

From Latin American Spanish [Term?], ultimately from a Native American language.

Danger is also attributed to their breath — no macajuel should "blow" on [some]one. […] This belief persists and is attributable to the fact that an enraged or injured macajuel will hiss and "blow" loudly.

2001, Hans E. A. Boos, The Snakes of Trinidad and Tobago, Texas A&M University Press, →ISBN, page 57:

"Macajuels ain't poisonous." She glanced over his shoulder into the distance. Faizal frowned. How did they know so much about snakes?

2015, Sabrina Ramnanan, Nothing Like Love, →ISBN, page 246:

Boa constrictor
Boa constrictor#Translingual

(chiefly Trinidad and Tobago) A Boa constrictor.


diamondback terrapin

diamondback terrapin (plural diamondback terrapins)

a species of turtle native to the brackish coastal tidal marshes of the Northeastern and southern United States, and in Bermuda.


European pond terrapin

European pond terrapin (plural European pond terrapins)


European pond turtle

European pond turtle (plural European pond turtles)

A species of terrapin, Emys orbicularis.


frill-necked lizard

frill-necked lizard (plural frill-necked lizards)


frilly lizard

Synonym of frilled lizard (“Chlamydosaurus kingii”)

eastern bearded dragon
eastern bearded dragon#English

Synonym of eastern bearded dragon (“Pogona barbata”)


Bengal monitor

Varanus bengalensis, a monitor lizard distributed widely in the Indian Subcontinent, as well as parts of Southeast Asia and West Asia.


Tanishpa's dwarf gecko

Tanishpa's dwarf gecko (plural Tanishpa's dwarf geckos)

Microgecko tanishpaensis, a species of gecko.


Mexican west coast rattlesnake

Mexican west coast rattlesnake (plural Mexican west coast rattlesnakes)

Mexican west coast rattlesnakes (plural)

Crotalus basiliscus, a species of viper.


reticulated whipsnake

reticulated whipsnake (plural reticulated whipsnakes)

A venomous snake of species Demansia reticulata.


green pit viper

green pit viper (plural green pit vipers)

Several species of pit vipers of the genus Trimeresurus.


Phnom Laang bent-toed gecko

Phnom Laang bent-toed gecko (plural Phnom Laang bent-toed geckos or Phnom Laang bent-toed geckoes)

Phnom Laang bent-toed geckos (plural)
Phnom Laang bent-toed geckoes (plural)

Cyrtodactylus laangensis, a species of gecko found in Cambodia.


Macaya green twig anole

Macaya green twig anole (plural Macaya green twig anoles)

Anolis singularis, a species of anole lizard found in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.


Yunnan keelback

Yunnan keelback (plural Yunnan keelbacks)

Hebius parallelum, a species of snake found in India.


alpine meadow lizard

alpine meadow lizard (plural alpine meadow lizards)


lowlands hump-nosed pit viper

lowlands hump-nosed pit viper (plural lowlands hump-nosed pit vipers)

Hypnale zara, a species of pit viper endemic to Sri Lanka.


southern litter skink

southern litter skink (plural southern litter skinks)

Caledoniscincus notialis, a species of skink lizard.


Equatorial spitting cobra

Equatorial spitting cobra (plural Equatorial spitting cobras)

Naja sumatrana, a species of spitting cobra.


dwarf green anole

dwarf green anole (plural dwarf green anoles)

Anolis isolepis, a species of anole lizard.


Pedra Branca skink

Pedra Branca skink (plural Pedra Branca skinks)

Carinascincus palfreymani, a species of skink.


spotted sand lizard

spotted sand lizard (plural spotted sand lizards)

A desert-dwelling lizard endemic to Africa, of species Meroles suborbitalis.


water python

A python species, Liasis fuscus, of southern New Guinea and northern Australia.


Eastwood's whip lizard

Eastwood's whip lizard (plural Eastwood's whip lizards)

Tetradactylus eastwoodae, an extinct species of lizard.


Ulmer's reed snake

Ulmer's reed snake (plural Ulmer's reed snakes)

Calamaria ulmeri, a species of Sumatran snake.


Texas garter snake

Texas garter snake (plural Texas garter snakes)

Thamnophis sirtalis annectens, a subspecies of garter snake.


pine snake

A snake of the species Pituophis melanoleucus (or others in that genus).


leopard tortoise

leopard tortoise (plural leopard tortoises)

Stigmochelys pardalis, a large tortoise of the African savannas, with a patterned shell resembling the coat of a leopard.


sandfish skink

Scincus scincus, a species of skink notable for its habit of burrowing into sand.


Tanahjampea bent-toed gecko

Tanahjampea bent-toed gecko (plural Tanahjampea bent-toed geckos)

Cyrtodactylus tanahjampea, a species of gecko native to Tanah Jampea Island, Indonesia.


Baoruco giant anole

Baoruco giant anole (plural Baoruco giant anoles)

Anolis barahonae, a species of anole found in Hispaniola.


brown anole

Anolis sagrei, a species of anole endemic to Cuba and invasive to the United States.


Cuban striped curlytail

Cuban striped curlytail (plural Cuban striped curlytails)

Leiocephalus stictigaster, a species of Cuban curlytail lizard.


eleven-striped blind snake

eleven-striped blind snake (plural eleven-striped blind snakes)

Epictia undecimstriata, a species of slender blind snake.


common purple-glossed snake

common purple-glossed snake (plural common purple-glossed snakes)

From common + purple-glossed snake (any snake in the genus "Amblyodipsas").

af

Amblyodipsas polylepis, a species of venomous sub-Saharan snake.


Goldman's bunchgrass lizard

en-noun

Goldman's bunchgrass lizard (plural Goldman's bunchgrass lizards)

Sceloporus goldmani, a species of Mexican lizard.


Fischer's chameleon

Fischer's chameleon (plural Fischer's chameleons)

From Fischer (named in honor of Johann Gustav Fischer) + -'s + chameleon.

af

Kinyongia fischeri, a species of Tanzanian chameleon.


Solomon Island spiny monitor

en-noun

Solomon Island spiny monitor (plural Solomon Island spiny monitors)

A monitor lizard of species Varanus spinulosus.


Agassiz's anole

Agassiz's anole (plural Agassiz's anoles)

Anolis agassizi, a species of Colombian anole.


Oaxaca mud turtle

Oaxaca mud turtle (plural Oaxaca mud turtles)

From Oaxaca (“polity of Mexico”) + mud turtle (“Kinosternon sp.”), a calque of translingual Kinosternon oaxacae.

calque

A Mexican mud turtle of species Kinosternon oaxacae.


Jamaican blind snake

en-noun

Jamaican blind snake (plural Jamaican blind snakes)

Typhlops jamaicensis, a species of blind snake.


Laredo striped whiptail

Laredo striped whiptail (plural Laredo striped whiptails)

Aspidoscelis laredoensis, a species of exclusively female green-to-brown whiptail.


pond slider

Trachemys scripta, a medium-sized semiaquatic turtle.


yellow-bellied slider

yellow-bellied slider (plural yellow-bellied sliders)

Trachemys scripta scripta, a subspecies of pond slider turtle.


Namoi River snapping turtle

Namoi River snapping turtle (plural Namoi River snapping turtles)

From Namoi River on Wikipedia.Wikipedia + snapping turtle.

com

<b class="Latn" lang="en">Namoi River</b> on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Australian saw-shelled turtle
Australian saw-shelled turtle

Myuchelys bellii, a species of Australian saw-shelled turtle.


Santa Fe Island tortoise

en-noun

Santa Fe Island tortoise (plural Santa Fe Island tortoises)


perichelydian

suf

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Perichelydia</i>


rhaptochelydian

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Rhaptochelydia</i>

Any species of reptile in the taxon Rhaptochelydia.


pantestudine

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translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Pantestudines</i>

Any reptile of the clade Pantestudines, which are more closely related to turtles than any other animals.


mesochelydian

suf

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Mesochelydia</i>


orange-throated whiptail

en-noun

orange-throated whiptail (plural orange-throated whiptails)

Aspidoscelis hyperythrus, a species of teiid whiptail.


Atherton ctenotus

Atherton ctenotus (plural Atherton ctenotuses)

From Atherton + ctenotus (Skink in genus "Ctenotus").

com

Ctenotus monticola, a species of skink in the genus Ctenotus.


hagworm

Inherited from Middle English hagworme (“viper”), from Old Norse hǫggormr (“serpent”), from hǫgg (“stroke, blow”) + ormr (“worm, snake”). Cognate with Icelandic höggormur (“poisonous snake, serpent”), Swedish huggorm (“adder, viper”).

cog

(UK, dialectal) A common snake, such as an adder or a viper.


gongxianosaur

Clipping of translingual Gongxianosaurus, from Chinese 珙县 (Gǒng Xiàn), the village where its fossils were found.

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translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Gongxianosaurus</i>

Any dinosaur of the Jurassic sauropod genus Gongxianosaurus, one of the earlier genera of sauropods.


megaraptor

(paleontology) A member of the genus Megaraptor of large theropod dinosaurs that lived in the Turonian to Coniacian ages of the Late Cretaceous.


thorny devil

A lizard of species Moloch horridus, of Australia.


Monte Cristo arboreal alligator lizard

en-noun

Monte Cristo arboreal alligator lizard (plural Monte Cristo arboreal alligator lizards)

Monte Cristo arboreal alligator lizards (plural)

From Monte Cristo + arboreal + alligator lizard.

com

Abronia montecristoi, a species of endangered anguid lizard found in El Salvador and Honduras.


eastern crevice skink

en-noun

eastern crevice skink (plural eastern crevice skinks)

From eastern + crevice skink (various skinks of the genus Egernia).

com

Egernia mcpheei, a species of large skink native to eastern Australia.


murder log

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-murder log.wav

From a likening of the appearance of a crocodilian waiting to ambush prey to that of a log submerged in water.

They tell us the murder logs are *not* NASA employees.

2018 April 16, Dan Broadbent (@aSciEnthusiast), Twitter:

Teaching in Florida is great because there are always murder logs outside your classroom. #alligator

2018 April 20, Jason Herbert, Ph.D. (@HerbertHistory), Twitter:

Toss in some “murder logs” and you have the best moat ever

2020 September 29, Liset (@Krzwyf), Twitter:

(Internet slang, humorous) An alligator or crocodile.


estuarine crocodile

en-noun

estuarine crocodile (plural estuarine crocodiles)

saltwater crocodile
saltwater crocodile#English

Synonym of saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus)


Texas spiny lizard

Texas spiny lizard (plural Texas spiny lizards)

Sceloporus olivaceus, a species of spiny lizard most commonly found in Texas, which tends to stay in trees for natural camouflage.


Texas spotted whiptail

Texas spotted whiptail (plural Texas spotted whiptails)

Aspidoscelis gularis, a species of whiptail with six subspecies.


glyptosaurine

Clipping of translingual Glyptosaurinae + -ine

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translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Glyptosaurinae</i>

suf

(paleontology, zoology) Any extinct anguid lizard of the subfamily Glyptosaurinae, known for their osteoderms.


woodlizard

Any species in the genus Enyalioides, also sometimes called dwarf iguanas.


warty thick-toed gecko

en-noun

warty thick-toed gecko (plural warty thick-toed geckos)

From warty + thick-toed gecko (gecko of genus "Elasmodactylus").

com

(zoology) Elasmodactylus tuberculosus, a species of eastern-African gecko.


aetosaurine

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translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Aetosaurinae</i>

(paleontology) A member of the sufamily Aetosaurinae, of the family Stagonolepididae.


typothoracine

Clipping of translingual Typothoracinae, itself from Typothorax + -inae.

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Typothoracinae</i>

(paleontology) Any stagonolepidid aetosaur of the subfamily Typothoracinae.


desmatosuchine

Clipping of translingual Desmatosuchinae

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Desmatosuchinae</i>

Any member of the Desmatosuchinae, a major subfamily of aetosaurs, which are not technically dinosaurs.


Asian box turtle

en-noun

Asian box turtle (plural Asian box turtles)


suchomimus

suchomimus (plural suchomimus or suchomimuses)

suchomimus (plural)
suchomimuses (plural)

Borrowed from translingual Suchomimus, from sucho- + Latin mīmus (“mimic”).

(paleontology) Any spinosaurid dinosaur in the genus Suchomimus from the Early Cretaceous Period.


daspletosaur

clipping

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Daspletosaurus</i>

(paleontology) Any dinosaur in the genus Daspletosaurus.


alamosaur

Clipping of translingual Alamosaurus, often misattributed to the Alamo.

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Alamosaurus</i>

(paleontology) Any dinosaur in the genus Alamosaurus.


tsintaosaurin

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Tsintaosaurini</i>

(paleontology) Any ornithopod of the tribe Tsintaosaurini.


argentinosaur

Clipping of translingual Argentinosaurus

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Argentinosaurus</i>

(paleontology) Any sauropod of the genus Argentinosaurus.


aralosaurin

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Aralosaurini</i>

(paleontology) Any dinosaur of the tribe Aralosaurini.


tyrannoraptoran

suf

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Tyrannoraptora</i>

(paleontology) Any dinosaur of the clade Tyrannoraptora.


dilophosaur

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translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Dilophosaurus</i>

The Dilophosaurus (dye-LA-fuh-SAWR-us), also shortened to Dilophosaur or even more so Dilo, is one of the dinosaurs in ARK: Survival Evolved.

(Can we date this quote?), Dilophosaur - Ark: Survival Evolved Wiki:

See the Dilophosaur up close and explore more of Utah's dinosaurs and prehistoric past at Moab Giants Dinosaur Park.

(Can we date this quote?), DILOPHOSAUR: TRACKMAKER OF THE KAYENTAPUS FOOTPRINT:

(paleontology) Any theropod of the genus Dilophosaurus, which are falsely claimed to spit posion due to the Jurassic Park series.


hadrosauromorph

Clipping of translingual Hadrosauromorpha

translingual <i class="Latn mention" lang="mul">Hadrosauromorpha</i>

Phylogenetic analysis positions Gobihadros mongoliensis as a Bactrosaurus-grade hadrosauromorph hadrosauroid.

2019 April 17, Khishigjav Tsogtbaatar, David B. Weishampel, David C. Evans, Mahito Watabe, A new hadrosauroid (Dinosauria: Ornithopoda) from the Late Cretaceous Baynshire Formation of the Gobi Desert (Mongolia):

In the background are a small horned dinosaur known as Zuniceratops and the hadrosauromorph Jeyawati

2019 May 6, Photos: Tiny Tyrannosaur Dinosaur Was About As Big As T. Rex's Skull:

Smaller specimens are identifiable as juvenile hadrosauromorphs.

2020 August 15, Chase Doran Brownstein, Osteology and phylogeny of small-bodied hadrosauromorphs from an end-Cretaceous marine assemblage:

(paleontology) Any ornithopod of the clade Hadrosauromorpha.


Boettger's two-headed snake

en-noun

Boettger's two-headed snake (plural Boettger's two-headed snakes)

Micrelaps boettgeri, a species of mole viper.


Tenerife giant lizard

The Tenerife giant lizard, Gallotia goliath, was a one-metre-long herbivore, with powerful jaws.

2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: The First 100 Million Years, Penguin, published 2019, page 98:

An extinct species of lizard, Gallotia goliath, that lived on Tenerife.


La Gomera giant lizard

La Gomera giant lizard (plural La Gomera giant lizards)

For over a century the La Gomera giant lizard (Gallotia bravoana) was thought to be extinct.

A large species of lizard, Gallotia bravoana, native to the island of La Gomera.