Tuatara

look at this boi

The tuatara is the cutest non-lizard you'll ever see. Although they look a lot like lizards, they are not actually lizards, and are their own thing. These fellas are native to new Zealand and have not changed one bit since the Precambrian era, therefore, they are perfect. As well as that, they have not turned into crabs yet, like most creatures are destined to do. The single extant species of tuatara are the only member of their order as well, which means there are no other reptiles like them. Their closest living relatives are in fact Squamates (lizards or snakes), but as stated, are not, in fact, lizards, as pointed out by Alula.

Tuatara can actually live up to one hundred years old, and the longest living tuatara's name is Henry, and he is around 130-150 years old. Henry actually had a short film made about him, called "love in cold blood" which featured him and his partner Mildred, another Tuatara. Henry actually has his own Wikipedia page as well. Such a good old boi. Tuatara are typically greenish brown and grey, and measure about 31 inches long, as they are, in fact, large. they are sometimes described as "living fossils" although this term has been deprecated by paleontologists, as there isn't actually any evidence that they have not changed at all since the Precambrian.

Henry, in all his glory

Tuatara have 5 to 6 billion pairs of DNA, nearly double that of humans.

The Tuatara have been protected by law since 1895. They are also endangered, like most things in new Zealand (including the new Zealanders. Save the New Zealanders!), because of large rats that keep eating their eggs. Well, normal sized rats actually.

On the off chance you do encounter one, please resist the urge to pick them up and snuggle them, and give them some distance. They will chomp you. Actually, it's illegal to touch them at all without a permit, but it would definitely be worth it to hug one.

The Tuatara were actually classified as lizards when the British museum received a skull of one, and they just kind of figured it was a lizard., although it's skull is quite similar to that of a bird.

biology

Tuatara are the largest reptilians in new Zealand, measuring about 2 feet long, making them perfect cuddling size. females are also slightly smaller. In fact, tuatara have sexual Dysmorphism, which makes the males a bit bigger. The San Diego Zoo actually has a male measuring over 31 inches long! What a big boy! they generally weigh a pound or two, making them very easy to pick up (unless you are a tiny baby). Tuatara have a very strange skeleton compared to that of other reptiles, as their skull resembles that of a bird, with a beak of sorts. the brain of the tuatara actually only takes up about half of their skull cavity. as for what's in the rest of it, I do not know.

A very strange skull indeed. note that the teeth are attached to the skull but they also have a beak.

Cultural impact

Tuatara have had a massive impact on the culture of this world, even if you most likely did not know they existed before now. Do I even need to go into detail about how influential these guys are? Make sure to buy plushies of them (after a Google search, the plushies kinda suck, so someone please make better plushies).