Huehuecuetzpalli

Huehuecuetzpalli
Temporal range: Late Albian, 105 Ma
Life restoration of Huehuecuetzpalli mixtecus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Genus: Huehuecuetzpalli
Reynoso, 1998
Type species
Huehuecuetzpalli mixtecus
Reynoso 1998

Huehuecuetzpalli (translating to "the ancient lizard" in Nahuatl) is an extinct genus of lizard from the Early Cretaceous (late Albian) Tlayúa Formation, a Lagerstätte near Tepexi de Rodríguez, Central Mexico. One species, H. mixectus, is known. Although it is not the oldest known lizard, Huehuecuetzpalli may be amongst the most basal members of Squamata (the group that includes lizards and snakes), and has been variously considered a close relative of Bavarisaurus, Bellairsia, Marmoretta and Oculudentavis, or as the most basal iguanomorphan. Its basal position makes it an important taxon in understanding the origins of squamates.

Huehuecuetzpalli had peg-like teeth of even size, suggesting that it hunted small prey like insects. Its limb proportions are similar to those of modern lizards that practise bipedal locomotion, with hind limbs far smaller than the forelimbs. This suggests that it may, at least on occasion, have walked bipedally.


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