Bluetongue Skink

Bluetongue Skink
	Pine cone lizard ( Tiliqua rugosa ) sticking out the blue tongue that gives the group its name
Systematics
Superordinate :	Scale lizards (Lepidosauria)
Order :	Scale reptiles (Squamata)
without rank:	Scincomorpha (Scincoidea)
Family :	Skinks (Scincidae)
Subfamily :	Egerniinae
Genre :	Bluetongue Skink
Scientific name
	Tiliqua
	Gray , 1825

The blue-tongued skink or bluetongue ( Tiliqua ) are a genus of the family of Skinke (Scincidae) within the Squamata (squamates) whose representatives are characterized mainly by a partially or entirely blue tongue.

features

Blue-tongue skinks are medium-sized to very large, strongly built skinks. The largest species reach total lengths of up to 55 cm, the tail length corresponds approximately to the head-trunk length for most species . A characteristic feature of the genus is a large, blue tongue. The head is conical, the body cylindrical, the scales in most species smooth. They have four short legs with five toes of the same length each. The lower eyelid is movable. Ear openings are available.

Occurrence

Six of the seven species inhabit Australia, another species is also found on New Guinea and some Southeast Asian islands. The habitats used by the blue-tongue skink include semi-deserts, bush steppes, light forests and, less frequently, moist forests. Bluetongue skinks also regularly invade urban areas.

Way of life

Bluetongue skinks are diurnal ground dwellers that move very slowly. Among other things, they use cavities under fallen tree trunks, dense vegetation and burrows as hiding places. They eat flowers, fruits, seeds, leaves, arthropods , snails, eggs and small vertebrates. When bluetongue skinks feel threatened, they threaten with bloated bodies, hoist and show their blue tongues.

Reproduction

Blue-tongue skinks are ovoviviparous , which means they give birth to live young animals. In some species, the female carries up to 25 young.

Systematics

Currently 7 species are distinguished in the genus Tiliqua , which are differentiated from each other in terms of color, scaling and (partly) their range.

German name	Scientific name	distribution	Hazard level Red List of IUCN	Remarks
Dwarf blue tongue skink	Tiliqua adelaidensis ( Peters , 1863)	Mid North in South Australia	( Endangered - endangered)	monotypical
Giant blue tongue skink	Tiliqua gigas ( tailor , 1801)	New Guinea and Eastern Indonesia	( Not Evaluated - not assessed)	3 subspecies
Central Australian bluetongue skink	Tiliqua multifasciata Sternfeld , 1919	New South Wales , Northern Territory , Queensland , South Australia and Western Australia	( Least Concern - not at risk)	monotypical
Black and yellow blue tongue skink	Tiliqua nigrolutea ( Quoy & Gaimard , 1824)	Southeastern Australia, Tasmania, and Bass Strait Islands	( Not Evaluated - not assessed)	monotypical
Western bluetongue skink	Tiliqua occipitalis ( Peters , 1863)	W- and S- Western Australia , large parts of South Australia, S-Northern Territory as well as NW- Victoria and SW-New South Wales	( Least Concern - not at risk)	monotypical
Pine cone lizard	Tiliqua rugosa ( JE Gray , 1825)	Southern and Western Australia	( Least Concern - not at risk)	4 subspecies
Common bluetongue skink	Tiliqua scincoides ( White , 1790)	large parts of Australia	( Least Concern - not at risk)	3 subspecies

supporting documents

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f S. Wilson, G. Swan: A complete guide to reptiles of Australia . New Holland Publishers, 2010, ISBN 978-1-877069-76-5 .
↑ ^a ^b ^c M. Rogner: Lizards. Volume 2, Eugen Ulmer Verlag, 1994, ISBN 3-8001-7253-4 .
^ Tiliqua in The Reptile Database ; Retrieved May 22, 2011.

Web links

Commons : Tiliqua - collection of images, videos and audio files

Tiliqua in The Reptile Database

[wilsonswan2010-1] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f S. Wilson, G. Swan: A complete guide to reptiles of Australia . New Holland Publishers, 2010, ISBN 978-1-877069-76-5 .

[rogner1994-2] M. Rogner: Lizards. Volume 2, Eugen Ulmer Verlag, 1994, ISBN 3-8001-7253-4 .

[reptiledatabase-3] Tiliqua in The Reptile Database ; Retrieved May 22, 2011.