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Reptiles

Sloths' slow-paced lifestyle is a survival strategy, not a sign of laziness

Sloths Don’t Just Live in Slow-Mo, They Can Put Their Metabolism On Pause

Unlike most mammals, sloths don’t use vast amounts of energy when it’s hot, instead opting to slow down and conserve power, more like birds or reptiles

New Research

How Much Plastic Does It Take To Kill a Sea Turtle?

A new study suggests one piece of plastic has a 22 percent chance of killing a turtle that eats it, and 14 pieces will kill half

A photograph of the fossil turtle Eorhynchochelys sinensis, which lived about 228 million years ago and sported a beak but no shell.

Newly Discovered Turtle Ancestors Chomped With Beaks But Bore No Shells

A 228-million-year-old fossil fills gaps in the tale of turtle evolution—and raises a few questions

Trending Today

Australian Reptiles And a Toad Named After Gollum on Latest Endangered Species Update

The IUCN Red List shows Oz’s reptiles are in trouble as well as flying foxes, a Jamaican rodent and a New Guinea butterfly

The smart, menacing, powerful T. rex of 1993's Jurassic Park has lodged itself in the minds of millions.

How We Elected T. rex to Be Our Tyrant Lizard King

The true story behind our obsession with the last and largest of the tyrannosaurs

Genetic revelations are shifting the story of the Cuban crocodile and raising questions about the right way to conserve it.

The Quest to Preserve the Last of Castro’s Crocodiles

Breeders are trying to save a ‘pure’ Cuban crocodile—but out in the wild, divisions between species are increasingly murky

Why Rattlesnakes Are Just as Dangerous Dead or Alive

After receiving bite from decapitated Western diamondback, Texas man required 26 doses of antivenom

Turtle That Breathes Through Its Genitals Lands on Endangered Reptiles List

Australia’s Mary River turtle was a popular pet in the 1960s and 70s, but raids of the animal’s nests have driven it towards extinction

Turtles on Versova Beach

Cool Finds

Baby Sea Turtles Spotted on Mumbai Beach for the First Time in 20 Years

Though conservationists are celebrating the apparent success, the creatures may not be as rare as once believed

Young pythons warm themselves

New Research

Study Reveals Pythons Take Care of Their Offspring, For a Little While

The southern African python wraps around its eggs to keep them warm and does the same for its snakelets during the first weeks of life

New Research

Climate Change Is Turning Green Sea Turtles Female. That’s a Problem

Over 99 percent of turtle hatchlings in northern Australia are female due to increasing sand and sea temperatures

"I'm swimmering! For science!"

New Research

How Baby Sea Turtles on Treadmills Can Help Researchers Understand Wild Turtle Survival

No doubt it’s adorable, but the study offers clues into the impact of disorienting light pollution on the reptiles’ health

The black-necked spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis) that sprayed venom into Wandege’s eye.

When Science Means Getting Cobra Venom Spat Into Your Eye

How a reptile mix-up and a fortuitous dose of breastmilk helped researchers tap into biodiversity in Africa’s eastern Congo

What's a dinosaur, anyways? The answer is in the evolutionary tree.

Ask Smithsonian

What Makes a Dinosaur a Dinosaur?

The question may sound like a “duh,” but it gets to the heart of how we categorize and define nature

Found: A Rare White Crocodile in Australia

Its name is Pearl

Scientists Unearth Near-Complete Marine Reptile Fossil in India

Palaeontologists have unearthed the remains of an ichthyosaur, a prehistoric creature more frequently seen in North America and Europe

A hawksbill sea turtle poses for its close up.

New Research

New Study Offers Glimmer of Hope for Sea Turtles

Turtle numbers are on the rise in many areas of the globe, but the endangered species still needs help

The best defense is a good offense.

New Research

The Real Reason the Turtle Learned to Hide its Head Will Surprise You

Turtles retract their heads for protection, but new research suggests that ability evolved for an entirely different reason

An artist's rendition of Dinocephalosaurus carrying her baby through the ancient ocean.

New Research

This Ancient Reptile Gave Birth to Live Offspring

Rather than laying eggs like its modern bird and croc relatives this creature gave birth to live babies

A gecko uses millions of tiny hairs to cling powerfully to surfaces. A new device exploits this adaptation by using ultraviolet light as a switch.

The Innovative Spirit fy17

Scientists Can Turn This Gecko-Inspired Gripping Device On or Off With the Flick of a Light

The mighty lizard inspires yet another innovation that could prove a boon to robotics and manufacturing

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