What is the difference between a legless lizard and a snake?

In early 2008, in just one month of scouring the savanna of central Brazil, scientists discovered 14 new species. One of those new species was a type of legless lizard no one knew existed. A legless lizard? Wouldn't that be called a snake? Reptile Image Gallery. read more

Legless lizards evolved from the legged lizards with which most of us are familiar; legless snakes evolved from four-legged snakes that most of us have never seen. But the two do look an awful lot alike. read more

Snakes are simply put, a clade of legless lizards. This below diagram explains it nicely - And while the serpent is the largest and most diverse of these clades, it is certainly not the only one. read more

By comparison, the jaws of most legless lizards are far less maneuverable. As a result, they tend to eat proportionally smaller prey—but there’s an exception to this rule. Burton’s snake lizard (Lialis burtonis) is an unusual predator that specializes in eating other lizards. read more