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| Peninsular Mole Skink, Plestiodon egeregius onocrepis (Cope, 1871). Photographed near Gainesville, Florida. Adults reach a body length of 59 mm, and a total length of 150 mm. It is endemic to the Florida peninsula where it occurs in sand soil areas with pine scrub and dry hammocks. It is at least a partial sand swimmer. |
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| Five Lined Skink, Plestiodon fasciatus (Linnaeus, 1758). Photographed in Union County, Illinois. Adults may reach 210 mm in body length. It is widespread in the eastern US, from New England to Florida and westward to Wisconsin and Texas. It is common in forests and and forest edge habitats. Females brood clutches of up to 18 eggs. Hatchlings are striped with bright blue tails and they take 2 to 3 years to sexually mature. |
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| Broad Headed Skink, Plestiodon laticeps Schneider, 1801. Photographed in Alachua County, Florida. This is a male in breeding coloration. Adults can reach 143 mm in body length. It ranges from southeastern Pennsylvania to central Florida and westward to Kansas and Texas. It uses forests and forest edge habitats and is quite arboreal. |
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| Sand Skink, Plestiodon reynoldsi Stejneger, 1910. Photographed in central Florida. This is a highly adapted sand swimmer with greatly reduced limbs. It feeds on termites and other small arthropods. When disturbed it will feign death. Recent work suggests that it is long lived, females lay 2 eggs, and maturity takes 19-23 months. See: Ashton, 2005. Journal of Herpetology 39:389-395. This species has also been placed in the genera Eumeces and Neoseps. |
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