What order do snakes and lizards belong to?

Snakes and lizards belong to the reptile order Squamata. Squamata is the largest order of living reptiles and includes snakes, lizards and worm lizards, also called amphisbaenians.

The name Squamata comes from Latin and refers to scales. Members of the order are covered in horny scales or shields and periodically shed their skin. Many also have movable quadrate bones, which help snakes open their jaws remarkably wide when swallowing prey.

Scientists traditionally divided Squamata into lizards, snakes and worm lizards. Modern evolutionary studies show that “lizards” are not one single natural branch: snakes and worm lizards evolved from within the broader lizard lineage. Even so, lizard remains the familiar everyday term for many squamates.

The other choices belong to different reptile groups. Rhynchocephalia contains the tuatara, Testudines contains turtles and tortoises, and Crocodilia contains crocodilians. Squamata is the shared order linking snakes and lizards.