reptiles

Murray Foubister, Flickr // CC BY-SA 2.0

The descendants of one thought-to-be extinct species have apparently been chilling on the side of a volcano, eating grass for the last few hundred years.

himmelskratzer, Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Just before sunset, Cuban boas line up and dangle from the ceiling of a cave like a curtain, waiting for bats to pass through.

When trapped, the little lizard simply sheds its big scales and regrows them later.

You are getting dangerously close to this Gila monster.

Meet the Gila monster, the largest native lizard in the United States. But watch out for its venomous bites.

Nope, that's not a snake. It's a glass lizard.

If a limbless reptile like the one above crosses your path, it’s obviously a snake, right? Maybe not.

New evidence suggests that prehistoric turtle shells served a different purpose than we originally believed.

Flamboyant and reclusive in equal measure, this iconic lizard can bluff like a poker champion.

These big reptiles pop up in all kinds of places.

Discover the weirdest spots where live alligators have turned up, from a New York park to a Chicago basement, and more.

Jeff Servoss, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service via Wikimedia Commons // Public Domain

Researchers have started a fundraising campaign to sequence the venomous lizard’s genome.

It's not all hiss, rattle, and slither. Snakes can also growl, fart, and shriek.

Wolfe et al., Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine

Pro tip: Don't forget to yell "hey, bear!" when entering outhouses in Alaska.

A woman using an outhouse in Alaska got more than she bargained for when a black bear bit her backside.

Green anacondas can weigh more than 200 pounds, making them the world's heaviest snakes. Get wrapped up in more facts about these big beasts.

Alligators are pretty cool as they are, but new discoveries about the reptilian ambush predators are adding to their repertoire.

‘Lost’ Galapagos Tortoise Species Could Make a Comeback

Boa Constrictors Form Hunting Parties and We’re Totally Fine with That

New Gecko Species Gets Naked to Escape Predators

12 Fascinating Facts About Gila Monsters

5 Differences Between Snakes and Legless Lizards

Why Turtles Have Shells (It’s Not What We Thought)

10 Unfurled Facts About Frilled Dragons

15 of the Most Unusual Places Alligators Have Been Found

Why Scientists Love the Gila Monster

6 Sssecrets of a Snake-Sound Scientissst

How to Massage a Komodo Dragon

Some Reptiles Stay Warm with Help from Birds

5 Animals That Might Show Up In Your Toilet to Terrify You

10 Big Facts About Anacondas

11 Amazing Facts About Alligators