Reptilia

Question 1

Characteristics of clade Amniota

Answer 1

-amniotic egg
-dry skin with epidermal scales
-digits ending in claws
-internal fertilization, males typically with penis
-direct development, no larval forms
-no external gills, respiration via lungs
-ribs usually connected ventrally
Single occipital condyle

Question 2

What is the primary advantage of amniote eggs

Answer 2

It allows them to loose their ties to standing water; don’t need to lay eggs in the water

Question 3

Characteristics of order testudines

Answer 3

-anapsid skull
-body encased in a shell: dorsal carapace and ventral plastron
-pectoral and pelvic girdles are inside the rib cage
-toothless: keratinized cutting edge/beak

Question 4

What animals are in order testudines

Answer 4

Turtles

Question 5

Characteristics of order sphenodonta

Answer 5

-two living species in new Zealand
-well developed parietal eye
-gastralia
-uncinate ribs
-teeth in palatine bone (two rows of teeth in upper jaw)
-no tympanum/middle ear

Question 6

Characteristics of order squamata

Answer 6

-loss of quadratojugal arch
-kinetic skulls
-males with paired copulatory organs
-two modes of tooth attachment: acrodont|irreplaceable, pleurodont|replaceable
-caudal autotomy
-skin is shed

Question 7

What animals are in order squamata

Answer 7

Lizards, snakes

Question 8

Characteristics of order crocodalia

Answer 8

-nostrils at tip of snout
-heavy dorsal osteoderms
-laterally compressed tail
-complete secondary palate
-gizzard
-foramen of panizza
-complex courtship and maternal care

Question 9

What animals are in order crocodalia

Answer 9

Alligators, crocodiles

Question 10

Parts of an amniotic egg

Answer 10

-chorion-gas exchange
-allantois-waste storage/gas exchange
-yolk sac-nutrients
-amnion-protectiom from desiccation and shock