tuatara

American  

[too-uh-tahr-uh] / ˌtu əˈtɑr ə /

Also tuatera

noun

1. a large, primarily nocturnal, lizardlike reptile, Sphenodon punctatum, of islands near the coast of New Zealand: the only surviving rhynchocephalian.

---

tuatara British  

/ ˌtuːəˈtɑːrə /

noun

1. a greenish-grey lizard-like rhynchocephalian reptile, Sphenodon punctatus , occurring only on certain small islands near New Zealand: it is the sole surviving member of a group common in Mesozoic times

---

Etymology

Origin of tuatara

1810–20; < Maori, equivalent to tua dorsal + tara spine

Example Sentences

"The new animal is unlike anything yet discovered and has made us all think again about the evolution of the lizard, snakes and the tuatara," said Dan Marke.

From Science Daily • Nov. 30, 2025

Seeking to learn about the evolutionary origins of acoustic communication in vertebrates, the scientists recorded 53 species from four major clades — turtles, tuatara, caecilians and lungfish — to analyze what they heard.

From Salon • Nov. 9, 2022

The creatures included 50 turtles, a tuatara, a lungfish and a caecilian.

From BBC • Oct. 25, 2022

And unlike its cousins, the specific rhynchocephalian lineage that led to today’s tuatara had “exceptionally low rates of evolution,” notes Harvard University herpetologist Tiago Simões, who was not involved in the new study.

From Scientific American • Mar. 23, 2022

Russell Pickett, the billionaire chairman and founder of Pickett Engineering, shocked the black-tie audience at last night’s Indianapolis Prize by announcing that his entire estate would be left to his pet tuatara.

From "Turtles All the Way Down" by John Green