Night Lizards: Asteroid Survival Secret Revealed
- Night lizards, small reptiles, not only lived through the asteroid strike that decimated the dinosaurs 66 million years ago, but they continue to inhabit the same region today,...
- The cataclysmic asteroid,striking what is now Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula,triggered the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) mass extinction. This event wiped out approximately 75% of Earth's species.
- Chase Brownstein, a doctoral candidate at Yale University and lead author of the study, said the lizards likely lived "all around the margin of the asteroid impact."
Uncover the astonishing secret of night lizards, the remarkable reptiles that outlived the dinosaurs! This new study reveals how these tiny creatures not only survived the devastating asteroid impact 66 million years ago but also continue to thrive near the original blast zone.Researchers delved into the evolutionary history of these resilient lizards,discovering they are the only known terrestrial vertebrates to have persisted so close to the impact. News Directory 3 details the surprising findings, exploring their ancient lineage. Their slow metabolism may have been the key.This groundbreaking research sheds light on the K-Pg extinction event. Discover what’s next as scientists uncover more secrets about how life endures in the face of catastrophic events!
Night Lizards Survived Dinosaur Asteroid Strike, Study Finds
Updated June 25, 2025
Night lizards, small reptiles, not only lived through the asteroid strike that decimated the dinosaurs 66 million years ago, but they continue to inhabit the same region today, according to new research. The study pinpoints these lizards as the only group of land vertebrates known to have survived so close to the impact zone and still maintain a presence there.
The cataclysmic asteroid,striking what is now Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula,triggered the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) mass extinction. This event wiped out approximately 75% of Earth’s species. Despite the widespread devastation, two lineages of night lizards managed to persist.
Chase Brownstein, a doctoral candidate at Yale University and lead author of the study, said the lizards likely lived “all around the margin of the asteroid impact.”
The findings were published Wednesday in the journal Biology Letters.
The survival of these creatures remains something of a mystery. Brownstein speculated that their slow metabolisms may have played a role,reducing their need for frequent meals.
These secretive lizards, often just a few inches long, typically reside in microhabitats such as rock crevices, dense vegetation, or under bark and logs.
Previous research suggested that the “crown” group of night lizards-containing the most recent common ancestor of all living night lizards-existed during the dinosaur era.The new study tested this hypothesis by reconstructing the ancestry of the three living night lizard genera: Lepidophyma, Xantusia, and Cricosaura. Researchers used molecular clock dating, analyzing DNA mutations to estimate when the lizards evolved.
The analysis revealed that the most recent common ancestor of living night lizards emerged roughly 90 million years ago during the Cretaceous period. This indicates that night lizards have inhabited North and Central America since that time,predating the asteroid impact.
The research indicates that two night lizard lineages survived the asteroid’s impact. One lineage evolved into xantusia, found from the southwestern U.S. into Mexico, and Lepidophyma, present across parts of North and Central America. The second lineage led to Cricosaura and its sole species, the Cuban night lizard (Cricosaura typica), in Cuba.
While night lizards are not the only animals to survive the K-Pg extinction-avian dinosaurs (birds) and some mammals also made it through-they are the only known surviving group of terrestrial vertebrates that have remained endemic to North and Central America since the asteroid strike.
What’s next
Brownstein suggests that further research may reveal similar survival stories among other turtle and lizard lineages in the region, offering more insights into how life persisted through one of Earth’s most catastrophic events.