Scincella elegans BRAGIN, ZENIN, DINH, LE, CHARUNROCHANA & POYARKOV, 2026
Can you confirm these amateur observations of Scincella elegans?
Scincella elegans
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| Higher Taxa | Scincidae, Sphenomorphinae (Sphenomorphini), Scincoidea, Sauria, Squamata (lizards) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Elegant Ground Skink Vietnamese: Thằn lằn bóng đất thanh nhã |
| Synonym | Scincella elegans BRAGIN, ZENIN, DINH, LE, CHARUNROCHANA & POYARKOV 2026: 316 Scincella melanosticta (partim)—NGUYEN et al. 2009: 262 |
| Distribution | Vietnam (Quang Tri), Laos Type locality: Phong Nha-Ke Bang NP (formerly in Minh Hoa District), Quang Tri Prov., central Vietnam (17.69579°N, 106.00314°E; elevation 250 m asl) |
| Reproduction | |
| Types | Holotype. VRTC NAP-13925 (field no. NAP-13925), adult female, collected by A. M. Bragin and D. T. Dinh on April 8, 2023. Paratypes (n = 4). One adult female specimen ZMMU Re-18469 (field no. NAP-13926) with the collection same data as the holotype; two adult male specimens ZMMU Re-18470 (field no. NAP-12177) and VRTC NAP- 12178 (field no. NAP-12178) from Phong Nha-Ke Bang NP, Quang Tri Prov., central Vietnam (17.51°N, 106.29°E) collected by N. A. Poyarkov and S. X. Le in May 20, 2022; and one adult female specimen ZMMU Re-17057 from Lom Yan Cave, Nakai District, Khammouane Prov., central Laos (17.58435°N, 105.21710°E; elevation 199 m asl) collected by N. L. Orlov on July 13, 2009. |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis (n=5): Scincella elegans sp. nov. can be easily distinguished from all other congeners by the following unique combination of morphological features: (1) slender, medium-sized body, snout-vent length 44–52 mm; (2) prefrontals in contact or not; (3) nasal scales undivided; (4) infralabials seven (rarely six); (5) supraciliaries seven or eight; (6) two preoculars, two or three presuboculars, three postoculars, four postsuboculars; (7) enlarged nuchals absent; (8) two primary temporals; (9) supralabials separated from the eye by a row of small scales; (10) tympanum deeply sunk without projecting lobules; (11) midbody scale rows 28–35; (12) dorsal scales smooth, slightly enlarged, with paravertebral scale rows 58–65; (13) ventral scale rows, including gulars 67–75; (14) dorsolateral longitudinal stripes broad, contrasting, discontinuous, breaking up into large black blotches, with eight rows of medial dorsal scales between dorsolateral stripes; (15) enlarged, undivided lamellae beneath finger IV 11–12; (16) enlarged, undivided lamellae beneath toe IV 18–20; (17) two enlarged precloacal scales; (18) dorsal surface of body olive brown with vertebral enlarged black spots forming middorsal stripe; (19) ventral surface of throat, belly, and head gray-white; (20) hind limbs and tail orange. (Bragin et al. 2026) Unfortunately we had to temporarily remove additional information as this was scraped by multiple AI companies who sell that data. However, these details, e.g. detailed descriptions (about less than half a page) are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us if you need any of this material. |
| Comment | |
| Etymology | Named after Latin “elegans,” meaning “elegant” or “beautiful.” This name is given in reference to the lizard’s striking coloration and elegant proportions. |
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