The reptiles are the most evolutionarily important group of animals. They have limbs for walking, and they usually have dry, scaly skin, so they don't have to be in the water for most of the time. However, most of them (save for the dinosaurs, as well as the pterosaurs, plesiosaurs, and ichthyosaurs) have prevalent cold-blooded habits, and so, they must rest in the sun frequently. Having been descended from amphibians in the Carboniferous, the reptiles started out small, bested by the arthropods, fish, and amphibians. However, soon, they evolved into synapsids, which were animals that were very much akin to today's mammals. After the catastrophic mass extinction that culminated the Permian, they still continued their dominion of the Earth, and grew into many forms; some grew to large sizes, some returned to the oceans and became formidable predators, and some even grew membranous wings and took to the skies. As time would pass, the synapsids would evolve into mammals, while a few of the reptiles would evolve into a highly lauded group of animals: the dinosaurs.
Reptiles Throughout Time (note that those are not all the ones that exist)[]
Carboniferous Reptiles[]
Permian Reptiles[]
- Bradysaurus
- Pareiasaurus
- Scutosaurus
Triassic Reptiles (excluding dinosaurs)[]
- Proterosuchus
- Atopodentatus
- Euparkeria
- Tanystropheus
- Placodus
- Batrachotomus
- Nothosaurus
- Cymbospondylus
- Henodus
- Shastasaurus
- Poposaurus
- Desmatosuchus
- Scleromochlus
- Saltopus
- Ornithosuchus
- Shuvosaurus
- Smilosuchus
- Placochelys
- Postosuchus
- Peteinosaurus
- Stagonolepis
- Drepanosaurus
- Psephoderma
- Eudimorphodon
- Ichthyosaurus
Jurassic Reptiles (excluding dinosaurs)[]
- Plesiosaurus
- Temnodontosaurus
- Dimorphodon
- Steneosaurus
- Teleosaurus
- Cryptoclidus
- Liopleurodon
- Ophthalmosaurus
- Darwinopterus
- Kimmerosaurus
- Metriorhynchus
- Dakosaurus
- Scaphognathus
- Pliosaurus
- Harpactognathus
- Plesiosuchus
- Anurognathus
- Pterodactylus
- Rhamphorhynchus
- Aegirosaurus
Cretaceous Reptiles (excluding dinosaurs)[]
- Leptocleidus
- Sarcosuchus
- Istiodactylus
- Tupandactylus
- Guidraco
- Kronosaurus
- Tapejara
- Tropeognathus
- Longirostria
- Kaprosuchus
- Dolichorhynchops
- Tylosaurus
- Pteranodon
- Nyctosaurus
- Styxosaurus
- Eonatator
- Prognathodon
- Protostega
- Elasmosaurus
- Mosasaurus
- Deinosuchus
- Archelon
- Quetzalcoatlus
- Hatzegopteryx
Paleogene Reptiles[]
- Cerrejonisuchus
- Carbonemys
- Anthracosuchus
- Acherontisuchus
- Titanoboa
- Puppigerus
- Gigantophis
- Quinkana
Neogene Reptiles[]
- Wonambi
- Gryposuchus
- Langstonia
- Purussaurus
- Mourasuchus
- Stupendemys
- Crocodylus thorbjarnarsoni
Quaternary Reptiles[]
- Varanus priscus