Four-lined Skink
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| Four-lined Skink | ||||||||||||||||
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| Eumeces tetragrammus Baird, 1859 |
The Four-lined Skink (Eumeces tetragrammus) is a medium-sized member of the Eumeces skinks, a kind of lizard.
Taxonomy
There are several subspecies:
Some herpetologists also consider the Mountain Skink (Eumeces callicephalus) a subspecies of the Eumeces tetragrammus under the name E.t. callicephalus. Others, however, prefer to treat the Mountain Skink as a distinct species because its range is geographically distinct and there are morphological differences.
Description
The two suspecies can be distinguished by their color and their stripes. The Long-lined Skink is gray to light brown in color and has light stripes from the eyes extending to beyond its forelegs, whereas the Short-lined Skink is darker in color and has stripes that end before the forelegs.
Juveniles of both subspecies have — like many Eumeces — a blue tail; this color fades with age.
Adults reach a maximum SVL (Snout-Vent-Length) of some 7.5 cm (about 3 inches), and a TL (total length) of about 18 cm (7 in).
Range and Habitat
Eumeces tetragrammus occurs in northern Mexico and along the Mexican Gulf coast and in western and central Texas.
Both subspecies live in ligthly wooded areas, with the Short-lined Skink having a preference for rocky areas, whereas the Long-lined Skink is also found in grasslands.
Reproduction
The female lays about 5 to 12 eggs once a year, which she broods. Males develop orange (Short-Lined Skink) to red (Long-lined Skink) coloration of the head during the breeding season.
External links
- Eumeces tetragrammus (http://www.zo.utexas.edu/research/txherps/lizards/eumeces.tetragrammus.html)
- Info on the range (http://nasa.utep.edu/chih/theland/animals/reptiles/eumetetra.htm) (Note: the western range separated from the rest is actually the range of Eumeces callicephalus.)