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Sphenomorphus muelleri (SCHLEGEL, 1837)

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Higher TaxaScincidae, Sphenomorphinae (Sphenomorphini), Scincoidea, Sauria, Squamata (lizards)
Subspecies 
Common NamesG: Müllers Keilskink 
SynonymScincus Mülleri SCHLEGEL 1837: 13
Lygosoma Mülleri — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1839: 740
Sphenomorphus mülleri — FITZINGER in TREITSCHKE 1842: 140
Elania muelleri — GRAY 1845: 80
Elania Mulleri — SAUVAGE 1879: 56
Lygosoma muelleri — BOULENGER 1887: 338
Homolepida englishi DE VIS 1890: 499
Lygosoma (Ictiscincus) muelleri — SMITH 1937: 222
Sphenomorphus muelleri — MYS 1988: 143
Sphenomorphus muelleri — REEDER 2003 
DistributionIndonesia (Seram, Kai and Aru Islands; Irian Jaya)

Type locality: “Westküste von Neu-Guinea” [Irian Jaya, Indonesia]  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: RMNH 3835, Leiden (S. Mecke, pers. comm., 8 Oct 2016) 
DiagnosisDiagnosis (genus): Differs essentially from Lygosoma as follows: Prefrontal large, often forming a median suture; frontoparietals paired; preanals enlarged (except in hallieri); ear opening always present, large, somewhat smaller than the eye; limbs large and separated slightly or meeting or overlapping when appressed.” (Mittleman 1952: 5)


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CommentType species: Scincus muelleri SCHLEGEL 1837 is the type species of the genus Sphenomorphus FITZINGER 1843. Note that Gongylus (Lygosoma) melanopogon DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1839 was long considered as the type species of the genus. However, FITZINGER 1842 named S. mülleri as type species (see also SCHMIDTLER 2013).

Type genus: Sphenomorphus is the type genus of the family Sphenomorphidae Hedges & Conn 2012: 28 and of the tribus Tribe Sphenomorphini Welch 1982 (fide Shea 2021).

Key: for a key to the 18 species of Sphenomorphus in Vietnam, see Pham et al. 2026: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1279.188050. 
EtymologyNamed after Dr. Salomon Müller (1804-1864), Dutch naturalist and taxidermist who collected animals in Indonesia for Schlegel.

The genus was named after the Greek “sphenos” (σφηνός) = wedge, cuneiform, wedge, and Greek morpha (μορφά) = shape, form, appearance. 
References
  • 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: 575 pp. - 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
  • GOLDBERG, S. 2020. Notizen zur Fortpflanzung von Müllers Keilskink Sphenomorphus muelleri (Squamata: Scincidae) aus Papua- Neuguinea. Sauria 42 (2): 61-62
  • Gray, J. E. 1845. Catalogue of the specimens of lizards in the collection of the British Museum. Trustees of die British Museum/Edward Newman, London: xxvii + 289 pp. - get paper here
  • Hedges, S.B. & Conn, C.E. 2012. A new skink fauna from Caribbean islands (Squamata, Mabuyidae, Mabuyinae). Zootaxa 3288: 1–244 - get paper here
  • Hediger, H. 1934. Beitrag zur Herpetologie und Zoogeographie Neu-Britanniens und einiger umliegender Gebiete. Zool. Jahrb. (Syst.) 65: 441-582
  • Jacobs, H. J. and G. M. Shea 2022. Eight weeks in Lobo Bay.The Natuurkundige Commissie on New Guinea in 1828. I. Scincus and Centroplites (Scincidae). Bibliotheca Herpetologica 16(6):48–81 - get paper here
  • Mys, Benoit 1988. The zoogeography of the scincid lizards from North Papua New Guinea (Reptilia: Scincidae). I. The distribution of the species. Bull. Inst. Roy. Sci. Nat. Belgique (Biologie) 58: 127-183 - get paper here
  • Reeder, T.W. 2003. A phylogeny of the Australian Sphenomorphus group (Scincidae: Squamata) and the phylogenetic placement of the crocodile skinks (Tribolonotus): Bayesian approaches to assessing congruence and obtaining confidence in maximum likelihood inferred relationships. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 27: 384–397 - get paper here
  • Richards, Stephen; Simon Clulow, Deborah Bower and Arthur Georges 2018. Chapter 1.4. Herpetofauna of the Wau Creek proposed Wildlife Management Area, Gulf Province, Papua New Guinea. In: Richards (ed.) Rapid biological assessments of Wau Creek ... ExxonMobil PNG Limited. Port Moresby, p. 83-96 - get paper here
  • Sauvage, H. E. 1879. Notice sur quelques reptiles nouveaux ou peu connus de la Nouvelle-Guinee. [Elania annulata]. Bull. Soc. philom. Paris (7) 3: 47-61 - get paper here
  • Schlegel, H. 1837. Abbildungen neuer oder unvollständig bekannter Amphibien, nach der Natur oder dem Leben entworfen. Düsseldorf (Arnz & Comp.), i-xiv + 141 pp. [1837-1844] - get paper here
  • Smith, M.A. 1937. A review of the genus Lygosoma (Scincidae: Reptilia) and its allies. Records of the Indian Museum 39 (3): 213-234
 
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