Lepidosauromorpha

Belongs within: Neodiapsida.
Contains: Lepidosauria, Sauropterygia.

The Lepidosauromorpha are a clade of reptiles including all taxa more closely related to squamates than crocodiles or birds.

Synapomorphies (from Schoch & Sues 2015): Prefrontal-palatine contact broad, approaching mid-line; lower temporal fossa open ventrally; thyroid fenestra present; perforating artery in pes located between distal ends of tibia and fibula.

<==Lepidosauromorpha
    |  i. s.: Coartaredens Spencer & Storrs 2002SS02
    |           `--*C. isaaci Spencer & Storrs 2002SS02
    |         Anisodontosaurus greeriSS02
    |         Priscochelys hegnabrunnensisLW08
    |--Palaeagama vielhaueri Broom 1926QG90, B93
    `--+--Paliguana [Paliguanidae]QG90
       |    `--P. whitei Broom 1903B93
       |--Saurosternon [Saurosternidae]QG90
       |    `--S. bainii Huxley 1868B93
       `--+--+--MarmorettaLG07
          |  `--LepidosauriaLG07
          `--+--SauropterygiaLF18
             `--Kuehneosauridae Eolacertilia]LG07
                  |--KuehneosuchusE88
                  |--Kuehneosaurus Robinson 1967D07
                  |    `--K. latus Robinson 1962B93
                  `--Icarosaurus Colbert 1966LG07, C70
                       `--*I. siefkeri Colbert 1966C70

*Type species of generic name indicated

References

[B93] Benton, M. J. 1993. Reptilia. In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Fossil Record 2 pp. 681–715. Chapman & Hall: London.

[C70] Colbert, E. H. 1970. The Triassic gliding reptile Icarosaurus. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 143 (2): 85–142.

[D07] Dixon, D. 2007. The Complete Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs & Prehistoric Creatures. Hermes House: London.

[E88] Evans, S. E. 1988. The early history and relationships of the Diapsida. In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Phylogeny and Classification of the Tetrapods vol. 1. Amphibians, Reptiles, Birds pp. 221–260. Clarendon Press: Oxford.

[LF18] Li, C., N. C. Fraser, O. Rieppel & X.-C. Wu. 2018. A Triassic stem turtle with an edentulous beak. Nature 560: 476–479.

[LW08] Li, C., X.-C. Wu, O. Rieppel, L.-T. Wang & L.-J. Zhao. 2008. An ancestral turtle from the Late Triassic of southwestern China. Nature 456: 497–501.

[LG07] Li, P.-P., K.-Q. Gao, L.-H. Hou & X. Xu. 2007. A gliding lizard from the Early Cretaceous of China. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 104 (13): 5507–5509.

[QG90] Queiroz, K. de, & J. Gauthier. 1990. Phylogeny as a central principle in taxonomy: phylogenetic definitions of taxon names. Systematic Zoology 39 (4): 307–322.

[SS02] Spencer, P. S., & G. W. Storrs. 2002. A re-evaluation of small tetrapods from the Middle Triassic Otter Sandstone Formation of Devon, England. Palaeontology 45 (3): 447–467.