A tiny piece of amber from Myanmar has captured a defensive maneuver that lizards still use today: shedding part of their tail to escape a predator.

The post Lizard Dropped Its Tail 99 Million Years Ago, Amber Preserved Evidence appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

Dinosaurs evolved into some of the largest animals ever to walk the Earth, but a new mathematical model suggests that early mammals may have crowded them out of the ecological niches reserved for the smallest creatures.

The post Why Were There No Tiny Non-Avian Dinosaurs? Mammals May Have Been to Blame appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

The dunes sagebrush lizard, found only in the oil-rich Permian Basin, was classified as endangered two years ago.

Paleontologists have described a new genus and species of ancient gecko found in two pieces of amber from the 99-million-year-old (mid-Cretaceous) amber deposits in Kachin province, Myanmar.

The post Oldest Known Male Gecko Found Preserved in Kachin Amber appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

Today, lepidosaurs -- the reptile group that includes lizards, snakes and New Zealand’s tuatara -- are among the most diverse vertebrates on Earth, but their earliest evolutionary history remains poorly understood.

The post Tiny Triassic Reptile Sheds Light on Early Lizard Evolution appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

Paleontologists have identified a new genus and species of pan-shinisaur lizard from a partial upper jaw discovered in southern France, pushing the presence of its lineage in Europe back by at least 30 million years.

The post 83-Million-Year-Old Crocodile Lizard Fossil Unearthed in France appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.