List of largest reptiles
The list of largest reptiles includes living crocodilians that reach a length of and more, such as Orinoco crocodile, American crocodile, Nile crocodile, saltwater crocodile, gharial and false gharial. The largest known crocodilian specimen measured and was shot in South America by Aimé Bonpland. Unconfirmed reports of larger crocodilians exist, but examinations of incomplete remains indicate a length of less than and.
Table of heaviest living reptiles
The following is a list of the heaviest living reptile species, which is dominated by the crocodilians. Unlike the upper weights of mammals, birds or fish, mass in reptiles is frequently poorly documented and many are subject to conjecture and estimation.| Rank | Species | Average mass | Maximum mass | Average total length |
| 1 | Saltwater crocodile | |||
| 2 | Nile crocodile | 350 – 750 kg | 3.7 - 4.9 m | |
| 3 | Orinoco crocodile | 380 – 650 kg | 1,100 kg | 3.7 - 4.9 m |
| 4 | Leatherback sea turtle | 250 – 600 kg | 932 kg | 2.0 m |
| 5 | Black caiman | 300 – 510 kg | 1,100 kg | 2.7 - 4.3 m |
| 6 | American crocodile | 250 – 500 kg | 1,000 kg | 3.0 - 4.3 m |
| 7 | Gharial | 977 kg | ||
| 8 | American alligator | 200 – 400 kg | 1,000 kg | 2.7 - 4.0 m |
| 9 | Mugger crocodile | 160 – 280 kg | 700 kg | |
| 10 | False gharial | 210 | ||
| 11 | Aldabra giant tortoise | 205 | 360 | |
| 12 | Loggerhead sea turtle | 200 | 545 | 0.95 |
| 13 | Green sea turtle | 190 | 395 | 1.12 |
| 14 | Slender-snouted crocodile | 180 | 325 | 3.3 |
| 15 | Galapagos tortoise | 175 | 400 | 1.5 |
Crocodilians
The largest known specimen among the living crocodilians was an Orinoco crocodile with a length of . A long gharial was killed in the Ghaghara River in Faizabad in August 1920. Male gharials reach an average length of.The largest known saltwater crocodile measured and was shot in Papua New Guinea. A long individual was captured alive in Mindanao in 2011.
The largest Nile crocodile specimen was purported to be a man-eater from Burundi named Gustave; it was thought to have been more than long. The extinct Crocodylus thorbjarnarsoni was the largest true crocodile to exist, growing up to in length.
The largest member of this family to ever exist was the extinct Rhamphosuchus from Miocene Asia, attaining a length up to possibly, though was more typically. Based on its fossils, the latter species was less massive and heavy than the other giant crocodilians, weighing an estimated 3 tonnes.
The largest member of the family Alligatoridae is either the Black caiman or American alligator which have been confirmed to grow up to in length and weigh up to, not as large as the preceding crocodilians but still impressive. Unverified reports suggest lengths of up to for the black caiman and for the American alligator. The largest member of this family was the caiman-like Purussaurus, from northern South America during the Miocene epoch. It grew to long and could weigh up to 8 tonnes, making it one of the largest crocodilians ever.
Other contenders for the largest crocodilian ever include the late Cretaceous period Deinosuchus, at up to and. Sarcosuchus imperator of the early Cretaceous was found in the Sahara desert and could measure up to and weigh an estimated 3.5 tonnes.
Lizards and snakes ([Squamata])
- The most massive living member of this highly diverse reptilian order is the green anaconda of the neotropical riverways. These may exceed and, although such reports are not fully verified. Rumors of larger anacondas also persist. The reticulated python of Southeast Asia is longer but more slender, and has been reported to measure as much as in length and to weigh up to. The Burmese python, a south-east Asian species is known to weight as much 183 kg and is generally the heaviest snake on average modern wild specimens. The fossil of the largest snake ever, the extinct boa Titanoboa were found in coal mines in Colombia. This snake was estimated to reach a length of and weighed about.
- Among the colubrids, the most diverse snake family, the largest snakes may be the Keeled Rat Snake at up to. The genus Drymarchon also contains some of the largest colubrids.
- The longest venomous snake is the South Asian king cobra, with lengths of up to and a weight of up to. It is also the largest elapid.
- The Gaboon viper, a very bulky species with a maximum length of around, is typically the heaviest non-constrictor snake and the biggest member of the viper family, with unverified specimens reported to as much as. While not quite as heavy, another member of the viper family is longer still, the South American bushmaster, with a maximum length of.
- The largest of the monitor lizards is the Komodo dragon, endemic to the island of its name, at a maximum size of long and.Crocodile monitor is probably the longest living lizard, known to grow as much as 3.23 m. The prehistoric Australian Megalania, which may have existed up to 40,000 years ago, is the largest terrestrial lizard known to exist, but the lack of a complete skeleton has resulted in a wide range of size estimates. Molnar's 2004 assessment resulted in an average weight of and length of, and a maximum of at in length, which is toward the high end of the early estimates.
- The largest extant gecko is the New Caledonian Giant Gecko of New Caledonia, which can grow to 14 inches in length. It was surpassed in size by the extinct Kawekaweau of New Zealand, which grew to a length of 23 inches.
- By far the largest-ever members of this order were the giant mosasaurs, which grew to around and were projected to weigh up to 20 tonnes.
Plesiosaurs (''[Plesiosauria]'')
Ichthyosaurs (''[Ichthyosauria]'')
Tuataras ([Sphenodontia])
Turtles ([Testudines])
The largest living turtle is the leatherback sea turtle, reaching a maximum total length of and a weight of.The largest extant freshwater turtle is possibly the North American alligator snapping turtle, which has an unverified maximum reported weight of, although this is challenged by several rare, giant softshell turtle from Asia unverified to and nearly in total length.
The Galápagos tortoise and the Aldabra giant tortoise are considered the largest truly terrestrial reptiles alive today. While the Aldabra tortoise averages larger at, the more variable-sized Galapagos tortoise can reach a greater maximum size of and in total length. A much larger tortoise survived until about 2000 years ago, the Australasian Meiolania at about long and a weight of over 1 tonne. The tortoise Colossochelys atlas, of the Pleistocene era from what is now Pakistan and India, was even larger, at nearly and 2 tonnes.
There are many extinct turtles that vie for the title of the largest ever. The largest seems to be the freshwater turtle Stupendemys, with an estimated total carapace length of more than and weight of up to. A close contender is Archelon ischyros, a sea turtle, which reached a length of across the flippers and a weight of over.