Mar 13, 2009

Stump-tailed Skink

Behold the prehistoric mug of the latest Aussie addition to Ugly Overload: the stump-tailed skink (Tiliqua rugosa). There are four subspecies of this skink, and I have no idea which one this is. But in general, you can expect them to get to be omnivorous and each year the lady skinks give birth to one or two live young.

You can also expect them to be slow-moving and sleepy, with a wide body. In short, they sound a lot like me.

Photo source: Joachim S. Müller

8 comments:

  1. What a cute baby. Thanks for posting more reptiles; it made my week. More for next week too, please!

    ReplyDelete
  2. You're welcome, niner. I'll see what I can whip up. Submissions always help...

    ReplyDelete
  3. awww, he looks like he's thinking "HARUMPH!"

    most reptiles are so ugly they're cute, but here's one for you to check out: the crocodile skink, or Triblonotus gracilis

    the herp lover in me would LOVE to keep one of these, but their status as endangered (last i checked, anyway) makes me want to avoid it. they're just so freaking COOL.

    ReplyDelete
  4. oops, forgot to provide a link of some kind.

    http://www.tribolonotus.com/ should give you a good idea of their ugly cuteness. :) he's got a great photo gallery here: http://www.tribolonotus.com/MY%20ANIMALS.htm

    ReplyDelete
  5. More like a stump-nosed skink if you ask me!

    (You really should dig up a picture of the stump tail... what if we're called upon to identify one of those!?! :) )

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think the skink's smiling at the camera :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. He's thinking: "I brought you a cricket but I eated it."

    ReplyDelete
  8. Here in Australia we commonly refer to them as "Sleepy Lizzards"! Looking down at one, it's often hard to tell their head from their arse as they're similarly shaped.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.