A family of venomous lizards native to the Americas, containing only the genus Heloderma with two species.
From 'Heloderma' (the genus) + '-idae' (taxonomic family suffix). Established in modern zoological classification in the 19th century as scientists organized reptiles into families based on shared characteristics.
Helodermatidae is one of the rarest venomous reptile families—with only two living species, these ancient lineages have survived relatively unchanged for millions of years, making them living fossils of venom evolution.
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