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Tuatara

Sphenodon punctatus

Photo by lori.tas
Published on Project Noah
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Field Notes

Description:

The tuatara is a reptile endemic to New Zealand which, though it resembles most lizards, is actually part of a distinct lineage, order Sphenodontia.

Habitat:

This is Henry, he is housed at the Southland Museum and Art Gallery in Invercargill, New Zealand. He was 111 years old when I took these photos. He is part of their breeding program.

Notes:

Henry is believed to be the oldest Tuatara.

The jaw bone was on display in the Tuatara viewing area at the Southland Museum. It shows how it is actually their jaw bone that is serrated, because Tuataras ancestors separated from other related species before the development of teeth.

The tuatara has a third eye on the top of its head called the parietal eye. It has its own lens, cornea, retina with rod-like structures, and degenerated nerve connection to the brain, suggesting it evolved from a real eye. The parietal eye is only visible in hatchlings, which have a translucent patch at the top centre of the skull. After four to six months, it becomes covered with opaque scales and pigment. Its purpose is unknown

Reference Links:

Tuatara

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (32)
lori.tas
Ah yes, the parital eye. Thanks for reminding me, Tiz. I'll add that info to the notes section. If I remember correctly, it's also evident in some blind cave fish as well. Indeed, Noah Citizen. He's currently 117. And now has dozens of offspring.
Tiz
Lovely to find the Tuatara here, had a speach about it in school :) I still remember the third eye... Info from wikipedia: "The tuatara has a third eye on the top of its head called the parietal eye. It has its own lens, cornea, retina with rod-like structures, and degenerated nerve connection to the brain, suggesting it evolved from a real eye. The parietal eye is only visible in hatchlings, which have a translucent patch at the top centre of the skull. After four to six months, it becomes covered with opaque scales and pigment. Its purpose is unknown"... A Magic animal!
lori.tas
Thanks Phillip. He was the perfect subject, holding stock still.. I was so happy to hear a few years back that Henry was a father for the first time. Made the whole experience that more special. Maybe we'll meet again.
lori.tas
It's such an amazing endemic Jill. Not just unique amongst reptiles, but alone in its Order, which puts it in a similarly singular category as the Aardvark. Plus, it gives us a living link to a long gone evolutionary adaptation.
JillBlack
Wonderful photo of an endemic New Zealand species. Thanks for posting it.
lori.tas
Thanks Reza. He was a very accommodating critter. As far as I know he is still alive and well and living in the Invercargill Museum. It will be interesting to see how long he lives. As some tortoises have exceeded 200 years in age, it's entirely possible that he's only middle-aged.
lori.tas
That's a good point, Ava. The sex of lots of egg-laying reptiles depends on the temperature the eggs incubate. Many species will produce single sex clutches. Which will cause them to go rapidly extinct in the wild.
Ava T-B
Global heating could wipe this little relative of the dinosaurs out by making all eggs turn male! Read this story for more information. http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2012/10/16/163015959/tough-old-lizard-to-face-grave-romantic-troubles-say-scientists?ft=1&f=1001&sc=tw&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
lori.tas
Record Breaker. The Tuatara is the only member of the order Sphenodontia. A unique reptile species whose ancestors split with other saurians well before the emergence of lizards and snakes. Sometimes dubbed a "living fossil". Henry is the oldest known Tuatara and is currently 116 years old.
Hashen Itzam-na
hermosa criatura, una linea de la evolución, que des afortunadamente esta a punto de perderse por la mano del hombre...
Ashish
Oh... I do not know.. How I miss this fellow which had blue lips.. very marvelous creature..!!
lori.tas
No problem Emma. If you ever get to Invercargill, NZ, be sure to stop in and see him. I suspect he'll be there for many years to come.
HemaShah
Thanks for sharing Henry with us!
lori.tas
Henry is actually a few years older now, but in 2009, he became a father for the first time: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/henry-the-tuatara-is-a-dad-at-111-1516628.html
pesayo
To paraphrase a wise old reptile looking Jedi, "When 111 years old you reach, look as good you will not, hmm."
Yasser
Spotting of the Day! "Meet Henry, the 111-year-old tuatara from New Zealand. Although tuatara resemble lizards, they're part of a distinct lineage, order Sphenodontia, that flourished around 200 million years ago!" http://twitter.com/projectnoah/status/103999696351141889 http://www.facebook.com/projectnoah/posts/128160060612653
lori.tas
Thanks. He certainly wasn't going anywhere soon. They can take as few breaths as one per hour, and I'm pretty sure he never breathed while I was watching.
lori.tas
It's mainly a matter of getting a good angle Reanna. Unfortunately, when the lighting is low, as it was here, I have to try and play human tripod a lot. Flash and glass definitely don't mix. Which is why I got mostly blurry photos of all of the other Tuataras, that and all the little ones were all hiding (older Tuatara eat younger Tuatara). Of course they keep them separate, but they can still see each other through the glass, and I suspect it's ingrained behavior.
ReannaDee
I never would have guessed you shot this through glass. Great pic!
lori.tas
Thanks. Shooting through the glass was the biggest problem, as ol' Henry there never moved. They are amazingly still - breathing as little as once per hour! Apparently that slow of a metabolism is the secret to a really, really long life.
Darvesh
First pic is, really really, awesome !!
CataAna
Beautiful portrait! He looks great for his age.
Yasser
Truly a one-of-a-kind reptile with such a fascinating evolutionary history. Beautiful close-ups and thanks for adding the jawbone pic! I had no idea their jawbones were actually serrated.

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PublishedMay 11, 2011

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