Hatteria. Hatteria lifestyle and habitat
There are people who are either unfamiliar with tuateria or mistakenly consider this species of reptile to be lizards, but this is absolutely not the case.
Meet, tuateria or the second name for a reptile tuatara- a reptile that survived the era of dinosaurs. In New Zealand, in the northern part, there are islands whose shores are rocky surfaces.
These islands are connected by a small strait connecting the North and South Islands. In this not very cozy place on earth live reptiles - three-eyed tuateria, forming beaked squad.
It should be noted that the view of the islands on which Hatterias live gloomy. The islands are shrouded in thick fogs on all sides, and rocky shores cold leaden waves break. Vegetable world in these places it is scarce, and there are few vertebrate reptiles and birds in this area.
IN given time All animals, including domestic ones, were removed from the islands and most of the rodents were destroyed, which caused enormous damage by eating the eggs of the tuatara and the young offspring of the tuatara.
Currently, the New Zealand government has taken under the protection of amazing reptiles called “ living fossils" As a result, it was possible to stop the extinction of these reptile species and increase their numbers.
Today the population of hatteria numbers at least 100 thousand individuals. A zoo in Australia has joined this movement and now on its territory you can also see interesting animals dating back to the time of dinosaurs.
To the question: “ Why is hatteria called a living fossil?? Experts answer that tuateria has the right to be called living fossil, and all because the reptile belongs to the relict species of reptiles, whose age is more than 200 million years.
By appearance The tuateria vaguely resembles an iguana. Their internal structure is similar to that of a snake, something taken from turtles and crocodiles, they even have elements of fish, and what is most surprising is that they have organs, the structure of which was found in the most ancient species of dinosaurs.
From major representatives Tutteria lizards, first of all, is distinguished by the unique structure of the skull. An interesting feature is the jaw located at the top, the palate and top part cranium.
The described parts of the reptile can move separately from the inner part of the skull, where the tuatara's brain is located. On this photo of hatteria you can take a good look and compare it with lizard.
Even the male cannot boast of body size, because tuateria — animal the size from the tip of the tail to the tip of the nose is only 0.7 meters, and the mass does not exceed 1000 g.
On the back, along the ridge runs a ridge consisting of triangular plates. What is interesting is that it was this ridge that gave the name “tuatara”, because in translation this word means “spiny”.
The photo shows the third eye of the hatteria
Body animal covered with scales of a greenish tint with an admixture of gray, also tuateria there are paws that, although short, are very powerful and a long tail. Distinctive feature Tuatara is the presence of a third eye - the parietal eye, located in the occipital region. On photo where an adult is posing, you can see the unique structure tuateria.
Just don’t try to see the third eye in a photograph of an adult reptile, because this organ can only be clearly seen in young ones. The third eye in appearance looks like a small spot, surrounded on all sides by scales, but the unusual eye has a lens, and in its structure there are cells that react to light, but the organ does not have muscles that help focus the position.
When young tuataria grow up, their third eye becomes covered skin and it is not possible to see it. As a result of numerous experiments, experts came to the conclusion that the third eye is an organ that is not visual, but perceives heat and light radiation he is capable.
Character and lifestyle of the tuateria
Hatteria- reptile, leader night image life. It behaves actively at temperatures no higher than +8 ºС. All metabolic processes and life cycles for everyone species of hatteria, of which, by the way, only two occur slowly, even the breathing of reptiles is slow - at least 7 seconds pass between inhalation and exhalation.
Hatteria will not die even if it does not take a single breath for 60 minutes. Beaked tuataria They are not indifferent to water, they really love water procedures. It should be noted that they are excellent swimmers. But they are useless runners; short legs are not designed for marathons.
The tuatara is a unique reptile that can make sounds. The night silence of the tuataria habitats is often disturbed by their hoarse voices. Interesting feature this type reptile thing is tuateria makes its home in the nests of petrels - birds inhabiting the islands of New Zealand.
Birds, naturally, are unhappy with such arrogant behavior of reptiles, but they have no choice but to give up their housing to them and get away. Initially, experts believed that cohabitation between birds and tuataria was possible, but after observations it became clear that the reptiles destroy the nests of petrels during the nesting period.
Nutrition of the tuateria
As mentioned earlier, the tuatara is inactive during the day, and it hides from predators during the daytime. When night falls, the hatteria goes out hunting. Diet squad beakheads includes snails, various types of insects, earthworms, and sometimes tuateria allows himself to taste the meat of young petrel chicks, which does not happen often.
Reproduction and life expectancy of tuateria
The entire winter period - from the middle of the first spring month Beakheads hibernate until mid-August. In the spring, this species of reptile begins its breeding season.
It is worth remembering that the height of the mating season is in January by our standards, but in New Zealand at this time spring comes. The reptile becomes sexually mature by the age of 20, almost like us humans.
A pregnant female walks for almost 10 months. The female is capable of laying up to 15 eggs. She carefully buries the eggs in holes and leaves them there for the entire incubation period, which lasts 15 months. Such a period to no one known species reptiles are no longer common.
Biological feature, which consists in the slow pace of life processes, allows the hatteria to live a long time. Very often these reptiles live to see their centennial anniversary.
The secret of longevity is that reptiles lead a measured lifestyle, they apparently have nowhere to rush, and the living conditions on the shores of New Zealand probably also prolong life cycle interesting and extremely unique species of reptiles that survived the age of dinosaurs.
I'm exploring the world. Snakes, crocodiles, turtles Semenov Dmitry
Hatteria: living fossils
Hatteria: living fossils
Hatterias, or tuataras, have been known for quite some time. At first they were mistaken for lizards, but in 1867 a sensational scientific conclusion was made: despite the superficial similarity, tuatara are not lizards at all, but representatives of ancient group reptiles, which was considered extinct along with dinosaurs 65 million years ago. In internal structure There are so many unusual things in tuatteria that there is no doubt about their “non-lizard” origin.
Hatteria
It is especially interesting that over tens of millions of years, tuataria have changed little and their modern representatives are almost no different from their fossil ancestors. This is why hatteria are called “living fossils.”
It was recently discovered that there are actually two species of hatteria that live on nearby islands off New Zealand. Relatively recently, these unique animals inhabited the two large main islands of New Zealand, but quickly disappeared here when people developed the islands.
On the deserted islands, where tuataria still exist, living conditions cannot be called easy. These islands have sparse flora and fauna, they are windswept and lack sources of fresh water. Tuatara usually live in burrows dug by petrels, but sometimes they build their own homes. They feed on any small living creatures that they can catch on the harsh islands.
The entire way of life of the tuateria fully corresponds to the name “living fossil”. They are active at unusually low temperatures for reptiles, and everything in their lives proceeds unusually slowly. They crawl slowly, the female lays eggs only about a year after mating, incubation of the eggs lasts another year, or even longer, the cubs become adults only by the age of 20 (that is, later than humans). Like lizards, they can shed their tail, but it takes several years for them to grow a new one. In general, it seems that time is nothing for them. In this cool-slow state, tuataria can live up to 100 years.
Compared to lizards, tuataria are quite large animals, reaching a length of 60 cm and a body weight of 1.3 kg.
Currently, tuateria are carefully protected, and their total number reaches 100 thousand individuals.
From book encyclopedic Dictionary(TO) author Brockhaus F.A.Fossil corals Fossil corals. – Representatives of class K. are already known from very ancient Silurian deposits and are found in more or less significant quantities in sediments of all systems up to and including the Quaternary, and in places they form among marine sediments
From the book Big Soviet Encyclopedia(IP) of the author TSB From the book Great Soviet Encyclopedia (LI) by the author TSB From the book Great Soviet Encyclopedia (NOT) by the author TSB From the book Great Soviet Encyclopedia (PO) by the author TSB From the book Great Soviet Encyclopedia (RU) by the author TSB From the book Great Soviet Encyclopedia (UG) by the author TSB From the book Everything about everything. Volume 4 author Likum Arkady From the book Evolution author Jenkins Morton From the book 100 famous mysteries of nature author Syadro Vladimir VladimirovichWhere were the first fossils found? Over the past two to three billion years, many forms of plant and animal life inhabited the Earth and then went extinct. We know this from studying fossils. Most of fossils are the remains of plants
If you think that tuatara or tuatara (lat. Sphenodon punctatus ) is just another one of the lizards, you are deeply mistaken! In fact, it is so unusual that a separate order was created for it back in the 19th century - beak-headed (lat. Phynchocephalia).
From large lizards The tuatara is distinguished primarily by the structure of its unusual skull. The upper jaw, palate and roof of the skull of young tuataria are mobile in relation to the braincase. Those. during complex movements, the anterior tip of the upper jaw bends down and is slightly retracted.
In addition, tuataras boast the presence of a third (parietal) eye located in the back of the head. Just don't try to find it in photographs of adults! The fact is that this amazing organ is clearly visible only in newborn babies. It is a bare speck, surrounded on all sides by scales. The third eye is equipped with a lens and light-sensitive cells, but the organ does not have muscles that could help focus its position. With age, the eye becomes covered with skin.
Its exact purpose, unfortunately, is still unknown. It is assumed that it is needed to determine the level of light and ambient air temperature so that the tuatara can control its exposure to the sun. She, like all reptiles, loves to bask on warm rocks.
The tuateria lives on the small islands of New Zealand. Previously, these unusual reptiles were found on the two main islands - North and South. However, they were destroyed by the Maori tribes who settled here in the 16th century. Today, tuataras are protected as an endangered species. For their sake, all feral dogs, cats and pigs were evicted from the islands, and rodents were also destroyed. You can get to these islands only with special permission. Violators will face no less than imprisonment. This is how they take care of this strange reptile!
Such concern is not surprising, considering that the tuateria is oldest species, which managed to maintain its original appearance since its appearance on our planet. And this happened about 200 million years ago. A real living fossil!
The male's body length including tail can reach 65 cm and weighs about 1 kg. The body length of females is somewhat shorter, and their weight is almost half that. A small ridge runs along the back, which consists of triangular plates. It was he who gave the name to the species: “tuatara” means “spiny”.
Hatterias settle directly in the nests of gray petrels. During the day they hide here from predators while the birds fly around in search of food, and at night they themselves go after prey, giving way to the owners of the nest. They do not pay very well for “hospitality”: during the breeding season of birds, tuatara sometimes eat their chicks. Although much more often they feed on insects, snails and spiders.
Hatterias live for about 100 years. Their metabolism is so slow and their life processes are so slow that they take a very long time to develop. For example, pregnancy in females lasts from 8 to 10 months, and the incubation period of laid eggs lasts as long as 15 months. Tuatara reach sexual maturity only at 15 or even 20 years of age. In general, they are in no hurry. Maybe this is the secret of longevity?
Niramin - Jun 20th, 2016
Cook Strait, separating the North and South Islands of New Zealand, is home to ancient creature– a unique three-eyed reptile hatteria or tuatara (lat. Sphenodon punctatus). This “living fossil,” whose representatives existed on Earth about 200 million years ago, can be found exclusively on the territory of the rocky islands of the strait. Therefore, the unique reptile is strictly protected, and those who want to see the tuateria in natural environment You must obtain a special pass, otherwise violators will face severe punishment, including imprisonment.
Hatteria looks like common lizard and is in many ways similar to the iguana. Its olive-green body, reaching a length of about 70 cm, is decorated with yellow spots of different sizes, which are located on its limbs and sides. On the back along the spine there is a small ridge, due to which local residents The reptile is called a tuatara, which in translation sounds like “spiny.” Despite its resemblance to lizards, tuateria belongs to special squad beakheads. This is due to the fact that reptiles at a young age have mobile skull bones. Therefore, the front end of the upper jaw, while moving the head, moves down and bends back, resembling a beak. In addition, young individuals have a special light-sensitive organ on the back of their heads - the third eye. This amazing reptile has a slow metabolism. Therefore, it grows very slowly and reaches sexual maturity only at 15-20 years of age. Hatteria is a long-lived species and lives for about 100 years.
The reptile feeds mainly on various insects, worms, spiders and snails, and during the breeding season the hatteria does not disdain the meat of gray petrel chicks, in whose nests it often settles down for living together.
Due to the uniqueness of tuateria, a special regime has been introduced on all islands where it is found. There are no dogs, cats, pigs or rodents here. They were taken from here so that they would not eat eggs and young individuals.
Photo: Hatteria. 
Video: Living fossil — The amazing Tuatara reptile
Video: Tuatara
Video: Tuatara
Hatteria hatteria
(tuatara), the only modern representative of the order of beak-headed reptiles. Outwardly similar to a lizard. Length up to 75 cm. Along the back and tail there is a ridge of triangular scales. Lives in burrows up to 1 m deep. Before the arrival of Europeans, it inhabited the northern and southern islands of New Zealand, where by the end of the 19th century. was exterminated; preserved on nearby islands in a special reserve. In the IUCN Red List. Successfully bred at Sydney Zoo.
HATTERIAGATTERIA (tuatara; Sphenodon punctatus), the only species of the genus of the same name in the order Beaked (cm. beak-headed reptiles) class of reptiles; the oldest of modern reptiles, which appeared in Jurassic period about 165 million years ago. Since then, tuateria has not undergone significant changes and is rightfully called a living fossil. Currently it is found only in New Zealand.
Externally, the hatteria resembles a lizard with big head and a massive body. Body length 65-75 cm. Hatteria is modestly colored: numerous small yellow spots. A ridge of low triangular horny plates stretches from the back of the head to the tip of the tail.
One of amazing features tuateria is the presence of a parietal, or third eye. It is located on the back of the head and hidden under the skin. In adults it is almost invisible, but in young individuals it looks like the surface of the skin not covered with horny scales. The parietal eye has a layer of light-sensitive cells and something like a lens. It does not function as a full-fledged organ of vision, but is capable of assessing the level of illumination. This allows the hatteria to effectively regulate body temperature by choosing a place and posture depending on the angle of incidence sun rays. Temperature limits for tuateria activity range from 6 to 18 °C. None of them modern reptiles not active at such low temperatures.
The upper jaw, palate and skull cover of the tuatteria remain mobile throughout its life. Thanks to this, the front end of the upper jaw can be bent down or retracted. This is necessary to securely hold the prey and at the same time absorb the impact of the jaws and jerks of the prey's body. This phenomenon is called cranial kineticism. The special arrangement of the hatteria's teeth also helps retain prey. There are two rows of wedge-shaped teeth on the upper jaw and palatine bone. Another row is located on the lower jaw. When the jaws close, the teeth of the lower row fit between the two upper rows of teeth. In older individuals, the teeth wear down so much that bites are made by the keratinized edges of the jaws.
The heart of the tuateria is designed in the same way as in fish or amphibians. It has a special venous sinus, absent in other modern reptiles. Large eyes with a vertical slit-like pupil contain a reflective layer of cells, allowing them to see well in the dark. There are no eardrums or middle ear cavity.
Hatteria is nocturnal. Its main food consists of insects, worms, mollusks, small lizards, as well as bird eggs and chicks. Mating occurs in January, when summer begins in the Southern Hemisphere. However, egg laying is observed only after the winter match - from October to December. The female lays 8-15 eggs in a special nesting chamber, which she then buries. Embryo development lasts from 12 to 15 months. Tutterias reach sexual maturity only at 20 years of age. Life expectancy in nature can exceed 100 years, and in captivity - 50 years.
Before the arrival of European settlers, the hatteria inhabited both of New Zealand's main islands. However, after colonization its extinction began. The main reason was domestic animals brought to the islands - pigs, goats, dogs, cats and rats. Some of them destroyed adult tuataria, others ate eggs and juveniles, and still others destroyed vegetation. As a result, by the end of the 19th century, the tuatteria became extinct on both main islands of New Zealand. Nowadays it is found only in a special reserve, on thirteen small waterless islands to the east and south of them. Petrels nest on these same islands. They make their nests in underground burrows up to a meter deep. Very often, the hatteria settles in the same hole with the petrel. In this case, the bird and reptile live together without causing any harm to each other. During the day, when the petrels are busy searching for food, the hatterias rest in their burrows. With the onset of dusk, the picture changes - petrels return to their nests, and tuataria go hunting. Currently, three subspecies of hatteria are distinguished, differing in the characteristics of their scaly cover and color. All of them are listed in the International Red Book. Hatteria is successfully bred at Sydney Zoo.
encyclopedic Dictionary. 2009 .
Synonyms:See what “gatteria” is in other dictionaries:
Hatteria Scientific classification ... Wikipedia
Tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus), the only modern. representative of the beaked order. Known from the Late Jurassic and up. chalk. Outwardly it resembles a lizard. The body is massive, olive green, long. up to 76 cm. Avg. mass of females St. 0.5 kg, males 1 kg. Head... ... Biological encyclopedic dictionary
Tuatara Dictionary of Russian synonyms. hatteria noun, number of synonyms: 3 reptile (63) ... Synonym dictionary
Modern encyclopedia
- (tuatara) is the only modern representative of the order of beak-headed reptiles. Outwardly similar to a lizard. Length up to 75 cm. Along the back and tail there is a ridge of triangular scales. Lives in burrows up to 1 m deep. Before the arrival of Europeans, it inhabited the North. And … Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
Hatteria- HATTERIA, an ancient, relict reptile. Known since the Late Jurassic. Outwardly similar to a lizard. Length up to 75 cm, along the back and tail there is a ridge of triangular scales. Lives in burrows up to 1 m deep. Before the arrival of Europeans, it inhabited northern and southern... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary
- (Sphenodon punctatum), HATTERIA, a reptile similar in appearance to a lizard, the only one modern look the wedge-toothed family (Sphenodontidae), which today represents the ancient order of beak-headed, or proboscis-headed (Rhynchocephalia). Hatteria... ... Collier's Encyclopedia
The only living representative of the subclass of beak-headed reptiles; same as Tuatara... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
See Beakheads... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Ephron
