Squamata (snakes and “lizards”) is a successful reptile group and one that is important for studying biology. As ectothermic animals (animals whose body temperature is partly dictated by external conditions) that are sensitive to ecological change, squamates aid in the understanding of global climate shifts. As a morphologically and ecologically diverse component of the worldwide fauna today and in the fossil record, squamates represent a key element in studies of the evolutionary process, evolutionary reconstruction, and Earth history.