Tuatara Tuatara (English spelling)

Japanese: ムカシトカゲ(昔蜥蜴) - ムカシトカゲ（英語表記）tuatara

This reptile belongs to the Sphenodontidae family of tuatarais (order Sphenodontidae), and there is only one family, one genus, and one species (illustration). It is the only surviving member of the Sphenodontidae family, which flourished in the Triassic and Jurassic periods, and is said to be a "living fossil." The skull has two temporal fenestrae, one above the other, the stapedium is fixed to the skull, and the premaxilla is beak-shaped. It inhabits Stephens Island and other small islands around New Zealand's North Island, and was distributed throughout New Zealand until rats and other animals brought in by humans became wild.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

喙頭（かいとう）目ムカシトカゲ科Sphenodontidaeの爬虫類で1科1属1種（イラスト）。三畳紀，ジュラ紀に栄えた喙頭類の唯一の生残りで〈生きている化石〉といわれる。頭骨には側頭窓（そくとうそう）が上下に並んで二つあり，方骨は頭蓋に固着し前上顎骨はくちばし状をしている。ニュージーランド北島のステフェンス島など周辺の小島に生息し，人によって持ち込まれたネズミなどが野生化するまでは，ニュージーランド全域に分布していた。

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