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General Reptile & Amphibian Facts |
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• There are about 250 species of turtles, 25 species of crocodilians, 5,500 species of snakes, 3,000 species of lizards, 130 species of amphibians, and 2 species of rhynchocephalians.
• Reptiles are cold-blooded. However, scientists use different terms. They use "ectothermic" for "cold-blooded" and "endothermic" for "warm-blooded."
• Most reptiles are carnivores, and eat whole prey or insects. Some reptiles (adult green iguanas, for example), are herbivores and eat green plants.
• Turtles can recognize faces and can do tricks.
• There has actually been documented cases of frog showers during heavy summer rainstorms. Fish have also been reported to rain from the sky.
• A gathering of frogs is called an army.
• Frogs can throw up in space by inverting their stomachs, cleaning it with their hands, and reswallowing it.
• The age of reptiles was ended by a meteor. Only 4% of species survived to repopulate the world.
• The crocodiles are of the oldest living reptiles. Some grow to in excess of 16 feet and can weigh over a ton.
• Largest Crocodile..... There are four protected estuarine crocodiles in a wildlife sanctuary in India that measure over 19 feet 8 inches. The largest of the four is 23 feet long!
• Smallest Crocodile..... The smallest species of crocodile is the dwarf caiman of South America. Females rarely grow beyond 4 feet and males rarely exceed 5 feet.
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