Niveoscincus

Niveoscincus
Niveoscincus
Metallic Skink, near Cradle Mountain, Tasmania
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia (paraphyletic)
(unranked): Sauria
Order: Squamata (paraphyletic)
Infraorder: Scincomorpha
Family: Scincidae
Subfamily: Lygosominae
Genus: Niveoscincus
(Hutchinson, Donnellan, Baverstock, Krieg, Simms & Burgin, 1988)
Species

8, see text

Niveoscincus is a genus of skinks (family Scincidae), commonly called Snow Skinks[1] or Cool-skinks[2] and residing mainly in Tasmania or Victoria, Australia.[3] It belongs to a clade with the genera Carlia, Lampropholis and possibly others of the Eugongylus group.[4] For similar skinks see genera Pseudemoia, Lampropholis, and Bassiana. These skinks have adapted to the cooler weather of southern Australia and particularly Tasmania, hence the common names.

Species

  • Niveoscincus coventryi (Rawlinson, 1975) – Southern Forest Cool-skink
  • Niveoscincus greeni (Rawlinson, 1975) – Alpine Cool-skink or Northern Snow Skink
  • Niveoscincus metallicus (O'Shaughnessy, 1874) – Metallic Skink or Metallic Cool-skink
  • Niveoscincus microlepidotus (O'Shaughnessy, 1874) – Boulder Cool-skink or Southern Snow Skink
  • Niveoscincus ocellatus (Gray, 1845) – Spotted Skink, Ocellated Cool-skink, or Ocellated Skink
  • Niveoscincus orocryptus (Hutchinson, Schwaner & Medlock, 1988) – Tasmanian Mountain Skink, Heath Cool-skink, or Mountain Skink
  • Niveoscincus palfreymani (Rawlinson, 1974) – Pedra Branca Skink, Pedra Branca Cool-skink, or Red-throated Skink
  • Niveoscincus pretiosus (O'Shaughnessy, 1874) – Tasmanian Tree Skink or Agile Cool-skink

References

  1. ^ Wilson S, Swan G. A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia. Second edition. Sydney:New Holland Publ., 2003
  2. ^ Niveoscincus, Reptiles Database
  3. ^ http://www.cyberlizard.plus.com/skinks_niveoscincus.htm Niveoscincus
  4. ^ Austin, J.J. & Arnold, E.N. (2006): Using ancient and recent DNA to explore relationships of extinct and endangered Leiolopisma skinks (Reptilia: Scincidae) in the Mascarene islands. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 39(2): 503–511. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2005.12.011 (HTML abstract)


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