Gongylomorphus bojerii (DESJARDIN, 1831)

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Higher Taxa	Scincidae, Scincinae, Scincoidea, Sauria, Squamata (lizards)
Subspecies	Gongylomorphus bojerii fontenayi VINSON 1973 Gongylomorphus bojerii bojerii (DESJARDIN 1831) Gongylomorphus bojerii borbonica VINSON 1970
Common Names	Bojer's Skink
Synonym	Scincus bojerii DESJARDIN 1831: 296 Gongylus Bojerii — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1839: 625 Scelotes bojeri — BOULENGER 1887: 409 Gongylomorphus bojeri — GREER 1970 Gongylomorphus bojerii — BRYGOO 1981 Scelotes bojerii — BULLOCK 1986 Scelotes bojerii — NORTH et al. 1994 Thyrus bojeri ? (O’SHEA, pers. comm.) Gongylomorphus bojeri — AUSTIN & ARNOLD 2006 Gongylomorphus bojerii borbonica VINSON 1970 Gongylomorphus bojerii borbonica VINSON 1970: 229 Gongylomorphus bojerii borbonica — BRYGOO 1985: 16 Gongylomorphus bojeri fontenayi VINSON 1973 Gongylomorphus fontenayi — AUSTIN & ARNOLD 2006
Distribution	Mascarenes, Mauritius (Round Island, Gunner's Quoin [Coin de Mire], Reunion ?)
Reproduction
Types	Holotype: MNHN, apparently lost (Brygoo 1985) Holotype: MNHN [borbonica]
Diagnosis	Diagnosis (genus): Skull characters: Palatine bones and palatal rami of pterygoids meeting medially; palatal rami of pterygoids "squared-off," not emarginated posteriorly as in the following two genera; pterygoid teeth absent (Fig. 7 in GREER 1970). Postorbital bone distinct, well developed; supratemporal arch well developed; 16 teeth on maxilla and 11 teeth on premaxillae. External characters: Interparietal small, not touching supraoculars; frontoparietals present (absent in all other subsaharan Africa, Madagascar, or west Indian Ocean island scincines); ear opening a horizontal slit; 38 longitudinal scale rows at midbody; digits 5-5 [from GREER 1970].
Comment	Conservation: Probably extinct on Reunion. Type species: Scincus bojerii DESJARDIN 1831 is the type species of the genus Gongylomorphus FITZINGER 1843.
Etymology	Named after Wenzel Bojer (1800-1856), a Czech naturalist. He collected in tropical Africa. He was Director, Royal Botanic Gardens, Pamplemousses, Mauritius (1948- 1949).
References	Austin, J. J. & Arnold, E.N. 2006. Using ancient and recent DNA to explore relationships of extinct and endangered Leiolopisma skinks (Reptilia: Scincidae) in the Mascarene islands. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 39 (2): 503-511 - get paper here Austin, J.J.; Arnold, E.N. & Jones, C.G. 2009. Interrelationships and history of the slit-eared skinks (Gongylomorphus, Scincidae) of the Mascarene islands, based on mitochondrial DNA and nuclear gene sequences. Zootaxa 2153: 55–68 - get paper here Beolens, Bo; Michael Watkins, and Michael Grayson 2011. The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, USA - get paper here Boulenger, G. A. 1887. Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Nat. Hist.) III. Lacertidae, Gerrhosauridae, Scincidae, Anelytropsidae, Dibamidae, Chamaeleontidae. London: 575pp. - get paper here Brygoo, E.R. 1985. Les types des scincidés (Reptiles, Sauriens) du Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, catalogue critique. Bull. Mus. Natl. Hist. Nat. (4e sér.) 7 (sect. A 3), suppl.: 1-126 Brygoo,E.R. 1981. Systématique des lézards scincides de la région malgache. IX. Nouvelles unités taxinomiques pour les Scelotes s.l. Bull. Mus. natl. Hist. nat. Paris, 4th ser., Sect. A., 3 (4): 1193-1204 Bullock, David J. 1986. The Ecology and Conservation of Reptiles on Round Island and Gunner's Quoin, Mauritius. Biological Conservation 37: 135 156 Desjardin, J. 1831. Sur trois espèces de lézard du genre scinque, qui habitent l'île Maurice (Ile-de-France). Ann. Sci. Nat. Paris 22: 292-299 - get paper here Duméril, A. M. C. and G. Bibron. 1839. Erpétologie Générale on Histoire Naturelle Complète des Reptiles. Vol.5. Roret/Fain et Thunot, Paris, 871 pp. - get paper here Garbutt N 1992. The reptiles of Round Island, Mauritius. HERPTILE 17 (4): 157-170 North S G; Bullock D J; Dulloo M E 1994. Changes in the vegetation and reptile populations on Round Island, Mauritius, following eradication of rabbits. Biological Conservation 67 (1) (1993): 21-28 Vinson, J., and J. M. Vinson. 1969. The saurian fauna of the Mascarene Islands. Mauritius Institute Bulletin, 6:203-320 [1969] Vinson, Jean-Michel 1973. A new skink of the genus Gongylomorphus from Macabé forest (Mauritius). Rev. agric. sucr. Île Maurice 52: 39-40
External links	IUCN Red List - Gongylomorphus bojerii - Critically Endangered, CR National Center for Biotechnology Information Google images

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