Tropidophorus beccarii

Tropidophorus beccarii, also known commonly as Beccari's keeled skink and Beccari's water skink, is a species of lizard in the subfamily Lygosominae of the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to the island of Borneo.

Tropidophorus beccarii
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Scincidae
Genus: Tropidophorus
Species:
T. beccarii
Binomial name
Tropidophorus beccarii
W. Peters, 1871
Synonyms[2]
  • Tropidophorus (Amphixestus) beccarii
    W. Peters, 1871
  • Norbea beccarii
    Mittleman, 1952
  • Tropidophorus beccarii
    Manthey, 1983
  • Sphenomorphus aquaticus
    Malkmus, 1991
  • Tropidophorus beccarii
    — Manthey & Grossman, 1997

Etymology edit

The specific name, beccarii, is in honor of Italian botanist Odoardo Beccari.[3]

Geographic range edit

On the island of Borneo, T. beccarii is found in Brunei, northern Kalimantan (Indonesia), Sabah, and Sarawak (Malaysia).[1][2]

Habitat edit

The preferred natural habitats of T. beccarii are forest and freshwater wetlands, at altitudes from sea level to 1,000 m (3,300 ft).[1]

Description edit

Dorsally, T. beccarii is reddish brown, with dark brown crossbands. The flanks have whitish spots. Ventrally, it is yellowish.

T. beccarii may attain a snout to vent length (SVL) of 9.8 cm (3.9 in).[4] The largest specimen measured by Boulenger had an SVL of 8 cm (3.1 in), and a tail length of 10.6 cm (4.2 in).[5]

Diet edit

T. beccarii preys upon water insects.[4]

Reproduction edit

T. beccarii is viviparous.[2] Average litter size is four.[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Iskandar, D.; McGuire, J. (2018). "Tropidophorus beccarii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T102349408A102349411. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T102349408A102349411.en. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Tropidophorus beccarii at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 22 June 2021.
  3. ^ Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Tropidophorus beccarii, p. 20).
  4. ^ a b Das I (2006). A Photographic Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Borneo. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 144 pp. ISBN 0-88359-061-1. (Tropidophorus beccarii, p. 118).
  5. ^ 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. (Tropidophorus beccarii, pp. 360–361).

Further reading edit

  • Goldberg SR (2017). "Reproduction in Beccari's Keeled Skinks, Tropidophorus beccarii (Squamata: Scincidae), from Borneo". Bulletin of the Chicago Herpetological Society 52: 65.
  • Hikida T, Ota H (1994). "Sphenomorphus aquaticus Malkmus, 1991, a junior synonym of Tropidophorus beccarii (Peters, 1871) (Reptilia: Squamata: Scincidae)". Bonner Zoologische Beiträge 45 (1): 57–60.
  • Peters W (1871). "Über neue Reptilien aus Ostafrika und Sarawak (Borneo), vorzüglich aus der Sammlung des Hrn. Marquis J. Doria zu Genua". Monatsberichte der Königlich Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin 1871: 566–581. (Tropidophorus beccarii, new species, p. 574). (in German).