Flexiseps melanurus (GÜNTHER, 1877)
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Flexiseps melanurus
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| Higher Taxa | Scincidae, Scincinae, Scincoidea, Sauria, Squamata (lizards) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | Spotted Skink [poecilopus: Toamasina Skink] |
| Synonym | Gongylus melanurus GÜNTHER 1877: 314 Sepsina melanura — BARBOUR 1918: 484 Scelotes poecilopus BARBOUR & LOVERIDGE 1928: 65 Scelotes poecilopus — ANGEL 1942: 130 Scelotes melanurus — ANGEL 1942: 134 Amphiglossus melanurus — GLAW & VENCES 1994: 318 Amphiglossus poecilopus — GLAW & VENCES 1994: 318 Amphiglossus melanurus — ANDREONE & GREER 2002 Amphiglossus poecilopus — SCHMITZ et al. 2005 Amphiglossus melanurus — SCHMITZ et al. 2005 Amphiglossus melanurus — MIRALLES et al. 2011 Flexiseps melanurus — ERENS et al. 2017 |
| Distribution | S and CE Madagascar Type locality: Anzahamaru, Madagascar |
| Reproduction | oviparous (not imputed, fide Zimin et al. 2022) |
| Types | Lectotype: BMNH 1946.8.20.94, purch. by Mr. Geale. Designated by Brygoo, 1984. Holotype: MCZ 21255 [poecilopus] |
| Diagnosis | Description (poecilopus). Snout subcuneiform, not, or scarcely, projecting beyond the lower jaw; eye moderate; lower eyelid with seven semi-opaque scales; ear opening small, horizontal; supranasals forming a median suture; nostril pierced between the rostral and vestigial nasal which is reduced to a narrow but well-defined rim; postnasal occupies all the space between the supranasal and first labial; frontal almost twice as long as the fronto-nasal, much longer than broad; no prefrontals; six supraoculars, the second causing a very slight indentation of the frontal; five or six supra-ciliaries: broad. no frontoparietals; wedge-shaped interparietal longer than its anterior edge much narrower than the frontal, into which its convex. almost obtusely angular, edge fits; seven upper labials, the fourth much the largest and entering the orbit. Twenty-four scales around the body. Limbs pentadactyle, weak, widely separated when adpressed; the fore limb, when stretched forward, covers only two thirds its distance from the ear; digits and toes well developed; the first toe shortest, less than half the length of third, fourth toe longest, twice the length of second. Tail much longer than the length from snout to vent. (Barbour & Loveridge 1928) Color (poecilopus, in alcohol). Above, superficially bronzy, the light straw-colored scales each having a reddish brown spot which, in the centre of the back, almost excludes the lighter edges of the scales. Beneath, immaculate buffy white, shading to brown on apex of lower jaw and to pinkish on the tail. (Barbour & Loveridge 1928) Comparisons (with macrocercus): Andreone & Greer 2002: 170 |
| Comment | Greer et al. synonymized A. poecilopus with A. melanurus [F. Glaw, pers. comm.] Type species: Gongylus melanurus GÜNTHER 1877: 314 is the type species of the genus Flexiseps ERENS et al. 2017. |
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