Thwaites's skink

Thwaites's skink
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Family:	Scincidae
Genus:	Chalcidoseps; Boulenger, 1887
Species:	C. thwaitesi
Binomial name
	Chalcidoseps thwaitesi; (Günther, 1872)
Synonyms
	Nessia thwaitesi ; Günther, 1872; Chalcidoseps thwaitesi ; — Boulenger, 1887;

Thwaites's skink (Chalcidoseps thwaitesi), also known commonly as the fourtoe snakeskink, is a species of skink, a lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to the island of Sri Lanka.

Etymology edit

The specific name, thwaitesi, is in honor of English botanist George Henry Kendrick Thwaites.^[2]

Taxonomy edit

C. thwaitesi is the only species in the monotypic genus Chalcidoseps.^{[citation needed]}

Habitat and geographic range edit

A highly fossorial skink, C. theaitesi is known from the Knuckles Mountain Range, between 700–1,000 m (2,300–3,300 ft).^{[citation needed]}

Description edit

C. thwaitesi has small eyes with scaly lower eyelids. The midbody scales are smooth, in 24-26 rows. The body and tail are elongate, and the tail is as wide as the body. The limbs are short and rudimentary, each bearing four toes, the inner two toes being short. The dorsum is dark brown, with a blackish-brown central region.^{[citation needed]}

Ecology edit

In many places, C. thwaitesi lives in sympatry with skinks of the genera Nessia and Lankascincus.^{[citation needed]}

Diet edit

The diet of C. thwaitesi comprises insects.^{[citation needed]}

Reproduction edit

C. thwaitesi is oviparous.^[1] In April an adult female may lay a clutch of two eggs, each egg measuring 6–11 mm x 18 mm (.33 x .71 inch).^{[citation needed]}

References edit

^ ^a ^b Species Chalcidoseps thwaitesi at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Chalcidoseps thwaitesi, p. 265).

External links edit

Further reading edit

Boulenger GA (1887). Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume III. ... Scincidæ ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 575 pp. + Plates I-XL. (Chalcidoseps, new genus, p. 423; "Chalcidoseps thwaitesii [sic]", new combination, pp. 423–424 + Plate XXXVIII, figures 1, 1a, 1b).
Boulenger GA (1890). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia. London: Secretary of State for India in Council. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xviii + 541 pp. (Genus Chalcidoseps, p. 226; "Chalcidoseps thwaitesii [sic]", p. 226, Figure 62).
Günther A (1872). "Descriptions of some Ceylonese Reptiles and Batrachians". Annals and Magazine of Natural History, Fourth Series 9: 85-88. ("Nessia Thwaitesii [sic]", new species, p. 86).
Smith MA (1935). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Amphibia. Vol. II.—Sauria. London: Secretary of State for India in Council. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 440 pp. + Plate I + 2 maps. (Genus Chalcidoseps, pp. 354–355; Chalcidoseps thwaitesi, pp. 355–356, Figure 83).
Taylor EH (1950). "Ceylonese Lizards of the Family Scincidae". University of Kansas Science Bulletin 33 (2): 481-518. (Genus Chalcidoseps, p. 507; Chalcidoseps thwaitesi, p. 508).

[RDB-1] Species Chalcidoseps thwaitesi at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.

[2] Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Chalcidoseps thwaitesi, p. 265).

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