Chalcides bedriagai
| Chalcides bedriagai | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Family: | Scincidae |
| Genus: | Chalcides |
| Species: | C. bedriagai |
| Binomial name | |
|
Chalcides bedriagai (Boscá, 1880) |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
|
Chalcides bedriagai, commonly known as Bedriaga's skink, is a species of lizard endemic to the Iberian Peninsula. It usually lives in sandy areas with sparse vegetation and good ground cover. It can also live in open woodland and burrow into loose soil. Females of the species give birth to live young. It has at least one major subspecies, Chalcides bedriagai pistaciae. These skinks are active during day and dusk, and they are very timid. They reach about 16 cm (6.3 in) in total length and have five fingers on each foot. They prey on insects, spiders, slugs and woodlice.
This skink is named for herpetologist Jacques von Bedriaga.
Bedriaga's skink resembles a scaled-down version of the ocellated skink (Chalcides ocellatus). It has a small head, an elongated cylindrical body and short limbs with five digits on each foot. It measures up to 17 cm (7 in) in length, at least half of which may be the fairly broad tail. Females are usually larger than males and in both sexes the tail may sometimes be broken off or in the process of regeneration. There are 24 to 28 scales around the mid-body. The colour is pale brown, yellowish-brown or grey with numerous small black-edged eyespots and usually a paler lateral line running along either side. Juveniles are a darker colour.
Bedriaga's skink is endemic to Spain and Portugal. It is largely absent from northern Spain and its distribution is rather patchy elsewhere. It also occurs on the Mediterranean islands of the Islas del Mar Menor and the Isla de Nueva Tabarca and the Atlantic islands of Cies Islands, Pessegueiro Island, Ons Island and Islote de Sancti Petri. Its typical habitat is sandy heathland with scrubby vegetation or sandy areas with more dense vegetation. It also occurs in open woodland, clearings, scrubland areas and rocky hillside slopes up to an altitude of about 1,750 metres (5,740 ft) above sea level. It can adapt to living in moderately degraded areas.
...
Wikipedia