Tiliqua scincoides

Tiliqua scincoides (common blue-tongued skink,[1] common bluetongue[2]) is a species of skink in the genus Tiliqua. It is native to Australia as well as to the Tanimbar and Babar Islands in the Maluku Province of Indonesia.[2]

Tiliqua scincoides
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Scincidae
Genus: Tiliqua
Species:
T. scincoides
Binomial name
Tiliqua scincoides
(White, 1790)
Subspecies

3, see text

Subspecies

There are three subspecies:[2]

Description

This is a large terrestrial lizard measuring up to 60 centimetres long and 1 kilogram in mass. It has a stout body and short legs.[1] It is variable in color but generally has a banded pattern. The tongue is blue-violet[3] to cobalt blue in color.[4]

This lizard is diurnal, active during the day. It is omnivorous.[1] It is ovoviviparous, the eggs hatching inside the female's body; she then gives birth to 5 to 25 live young per litter.[3] This species is known to live over 30 years. It is an adaptable animal, often finding habitat in urban and suburban areas, including residential areas of Sydney.[1] The lizard is considered beneficial in these areas, with its appetite for garden pests such as slugs and snails.[3]

When threatened it may hiss and reveal its blue tongue, startling potential predators. It has strong jaws and can deliver a damaging bite.[3]

There are three color-morphs that are part of the Tiliqua scincoides. The Albino T. scincoides, the Wild-type T. scincoides, and the Melanistic T. scincoides.  In warm environments, the Wild-type T. scincoides and Melanistic T. scincoides have more reflective skin than the Albino T. scincoides, therefore these two lizards can warm their bodies at a faster rate.[5]

gollark: It's a monoid in the category of endofunctors.
gollark: Yes, that's right, I KNOW APPROXIMATELY HOW A STATE MONAD WORKS.
gollark: ```haskelldoThing :: Expr -> (M.Map Int IVal, Int)doThing expr = evalState (go expr) 0 where go :: Expr -> State Int (M.Map Int IVal, Int) go (Int x) = do vcount <- update (+1) pure (M.singleton vcount (Lit x), vcount) go (Op o a b) = do (m1, c1) <- go a (m2, c2) <- go b let prev = M.union m1 m2 nxt <- update (+1) pure (M.insert nxt (ROp o c1 c2) prev, nxt)```↑ thusly, none are safe
gollark: This is ³ apioform, my youtube-dl from mere *days* ago isn't working.
gollark: Oh, that conversation was in <#800374627897442335>, right.

References
  1. Koenig, Jennifer; Shine, Richard; Shea, Glenn (2002). "The dangers of life in the city: patterns of activity, injury and mortality in suburban lizards (Tiliqua scincoides)" (PDF). Journal of Herpetology. 36 (1): 62–68. doi:10.1670/0022-1511(2002)036[0062:TDOLIT]2.0.CO;2.
  2. Tiliqua scincoides at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 18 May 2017.
  3. Tiliqua scincoides. Australian Reptile Online Database.
  4. Abbate, F.; Latella, G.; Montalbano, G.; Guerrera, M. C.; Germanà, G. P.; Levanti, M. B. (2009). "The lingual dorsal surface of the blue‐tongue skink (Tiliqua scincoides)". Anatomia, Histologia, Embryologia. 38 (5): 348–350. doi:10.1111/j.1439-0264.2009.00952.x.
  5. Geen, Michael; Johnston, Gregory (July 2014). "Coloration Affects Heating and Cooling in Three Color Morphs of the Australian Bluetongue Lizard, Tiliqua Scincoides". Journal of Thermal Biology. 43: 54–60. doi:10.1016/j.jtherbio.2014.04.004.
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