Menetia greyii

Common dwarf skink
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Family:	Scincidae
Genus:	Menetia
Species:	M. greyii
Binomial name
	Menetia greyii; Gray, 1845

Menetia greyii, commonly known as the common dwarf skink, is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to mainland Australia and Indonesia.

Etymology[]

The specific name, greyii, is in honor of explorer George Grey, who became Governor of South Australia and later Governor of New Zealand.^[1]

Geographic range[]

One of Australia's most widespread and abundant lizards, M. greyii occurs in all parts of the mainland except coastal areas in the south-east, and Cape York Peninsula.^[2]

Habitat[]

M. greyii is common in disturbed areas such as urban backyards, and is therefore fairly well known.^[2]

Description[]

M. greyii is a very small skink with smooth scales and prominent limbs. Dorsally, it is grey to brown, usually with a stripe of black flecks along its back. Some populations have bright-yellow bellies, while others are silvery grey ventrally.^[2]

Reproduction[]

M. greyii is one of a small number of vertebrate species that are known to reproduce by parthenogenesis.^[3]

References[]

^ Beolens, 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. (Menetia greyii, p. 108).
^ ^a ^b ^c Bush, Brian; Maryan, Brad; Browne-Cooper, Robert; Robinson, David (1995). A Guide to the Reptiles and Frogs of the Perth Region. University of Western Australia Press. ISBN 1-875560-42-4.
^ Adams, Mark; Foster, Ralph; Hutchinson, Mark; Hutchinson, Rhonda; Donnellan, Steve (2003). "The Australian scincid lizard Menetia greyii: A new instance of widespread vertebrate parthenogenesis". Evolution. 57 (11): 2619–2627. doi:10.1111/j.0014-3820.2003.tb01504.x. PMID 14686536. S2CID 34128811.