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Legless lizardsLists of reptiles

Legless lizard

Adapted from Wikipedia ยท Adventurer experience

A European smooth snake (Anguis fragilis) in its natural habitat in Poland.

Legless lizards are a special group of creatures that look like snakes but are actually lizards. They have lost their limbs or have them so small they can't be used for moving. These lizards have many names, including the family Pygopodidae, and live in many parts of the world.

The slowworm, a legless lizard

One way to tell legless lizards apart from snakes is to look for things like eyelids, external ear openings, and a notched tongue. They also usually have two lungs that are about the same size and a long tail, which is different from snakes.

Many families of lizards have evolved to lose their limbs. Examples include the Anguinae, found in Europe, Asia, North America, and North Africa, and the Pygopodidae, which live in Australia except for two species found in New Guinea. These lizards have adapted to life without legs in many interesting ways, making them special members of the animal world.

This article is a child-friendly adaptation of the Wikipedia article on Legless lizard, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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