Tuatara
Tuatara
New Zealand was separated from the rest of the world over 100 million years ago. The Tuatara “lizard” has survived all that time. It is not really a lizard. 1
The sphenodontians have a fossil record of about 225 million years and, as a group, were most diverse in the late Triassic and Jurassic 180?220 million years ago, when they inhabited Europe, Africa, and North America. Sphenodontians were already in decline during the age of the dinosaurs, and almost all of them became extinct by the early Cretaceous. A single lineage in the family Sphenodontidae survived on a landmass that separated from the southern continent of Gondwana 60?80 million years ago. This lineage gave rise to tuatara, and the Gondwanian fragment now forms the islands of New Zealand. Whether the tuatara have changed significantly from their ancient ancestors is unclear, however. No early sphenodontids have been found in the New Zealand fossil record. 2
The tuatara is the only surviving member of the order Rhynchocephalia. It is native to a small number of islands off New Zealand and has been classified as an endangered species since 1895. Tuatara, like many native New Zealand species, is threatened by habitat loss, harvesting, and introduced species such as mustelids and rats. 4
The name tuatara was bestowed by the Maori people when they arrived in New Zealand about 1,000 years ago. In the Maori language, tuatara is both a singular and plural noun. Two living species are recognized: Sphenodon guntheri (Buller, 1877) and Sphenodon punctatus (Gray, 1842). Within S. punctatus there are two distinguishable genetic forms. 3
Tuatara’s first mainstream appearance was in Justice League International vol. 1, #12 (April 1988). A few years later, the Global Guardians are all brainwashed into service under the Queen Bee of Bialya Tuatara, Rising Sun and Wild Huntsman are sent off on specific missions to attack Nazi strongholds and Justice League members. Tuatara is sent to attack a Neo-Nazi fringe group based in Dover, England. The Justice League members Metamorpho, Elongated Man and Flash were traveling to the site on a ferry when they encounter Tuatara. He had sneaked aboard the ferry itself. The battle, which takes place mostly underwater, is ended when he is wrapped up in the Enlongated Man’s body. He is taken to the surface, calls the League members ‘Nazis’ and soon falls into a coma. 6
Tuatara vary in color from olive green to reddish to gray to almost black. The base color usually is overlaid with irregular darker markings and speckled with paler spots. Compared with S. punctatus, S. guntheri is more often olive green and tends to be more heavily speckled with paler spots. The crest is typically white in both species. Juveniles are often pale gray-brown, with paler V-shaped markings on the upper surface and distinctive darker markings radiating from the eyes. When newly hatched, they sometimes have a large triangular pale patch on top of the head from the snout to the eyes. 7
New Zealand is a land full of many exotic and rare plants and animals. The kiwi, tuatara and even the humble weka are found only in New Zealand. However, these precious native animals are fading, one by one. 10
All is not well. The new ruler of Bialya, President Harjavti, is just as dangerous and deadly as the Queen Bee. Rising Sun has left for Japan and Owlwoman has vanished. Unknown to them, Tuatara and his remaining friends are in constant danger, as Harjavti struggles to keep control of the team. Owlwoman eventually hunts down Doctor Mist and the original Jack O’Lantern. 9
