Lankascincus taylori

Lankascincus taylori
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Family:	Scincidae
Genus:	Lankascincus
Species:	L. taylori
Binomial name
	Lankascincus taylori; Greer, 1991

Lankascincus taylori, commonly known as Taylor's tree skink, is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to the island of Sri Lanka.

Etymology[]

The specific name, taylori, is in honor of American herpetologist Edward Harrison Taylor.^[1]

Habitat and Geographic range[]

A montane representative of Lanka skinks, L. taylori is found in moist leaf litter, under stones and logs in forests from 470–1,350 m (1,540–4,430 ft) above sea level, at Sinharaja, Knuckles Mountain Range, Gampola, Hantana, and Udawatta Kele.^{[citation needed]}

Description[]

The head, body, and tail of L. taylori are long and slender. The midbody scales are in 24-26 rows. The lamellae under the fourth toe number 12-18. The dorsum is chocolate brown. Each dorsal scale has a dark gray horseshoe mark, which is open-ended posteriorly. A dark brown flank band can be seen with blue spots. The throat is grayish with blue spots. The venter is yellow.^{[citation needed]}

Diet[]

The diet of L. taylori includes insects.^{[citation needed]}

Reproduction[]

Sexually mature females of L. taylori usually lay 2 eggs at a time.^{[citation needed]}

References[]

^ Boelens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Lankascincus taylori, p. 261).

External links[]

Lankascincus taylori at The Reptile Database. http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Lankascincus&species=taylori
Lankascincus taylori at Animal Diversity Web. http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/Lankascincus_taylori/classification/
Photos of Taylor's Lanka Skink
Books about Lanka Skinks