Cryptoblepharus buchananii (GRAY, 1839)
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Cryptoblepharus buchananii
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| Higher Taxa | Scincidae, Eugongylinae (Eugongylini), Scincoidea, Sauria, Squamata (lizards) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Buchanan's Snake-eyed Skink |
| Synonym | Tiliqua buchananii GRAY 1839: 291 Ablepharus peronii var. peronii — BOULENGER 1887: 347 Ablepharus boutoni punctatus STERNFELD 1918: 424 Ablepharus boutoni plagiocephalus – MERTENS 1931: 116 Ablepharus boutoni plagiocephalus – STORR 1961: 176 Ablepharus boutoni plagiocephalus – WORRELL 1963: 34 Ablepharus boutoni plagiocephalus – MERTENS 1964: 107 Ablepharus boutonii metallicus — LOVERIDGE 1934: 375 Cryptoblepharus plagiocephalus – STORR 1976: 56 Cryptoblepharus plagiocephalus – STORR & HANLON 1980: 431 Cryptoblepharus plagiocephalus – STORR et al. 1999 Cryptoblepharus plagiocephalus – WILSON & SWAN 2003 Cryptoblepharus buchananii — HORNER 2007: 60 |
| Distribution | Australia (C/S Western Australia, from the Pilbara region to much of southern Western Australia) Type locality: ““New Holland” [= W. Australia fide BOULENGER 1887] |
| Reproduction | oviparous |
| Types | Syntypes: BMNH 1946.8.19.73-74, W. Australia; BMNH 1946.8.19.74 Lectotype: SMF 15685 [punctatus] |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis: A large (45–50 mm SVL), short-legged, shallow-headed, arboreal Cryptoblepharus, distinguished from Australian congeners by combination of usually having: six supraciliary scales; 24 mid-body scale rows; 52 paravertebral scales; 19 smooth subdigital lamellae under the fourth toe; hindlimb length 41.1% of SVL; head depth 42.3% of head length; tail length 136% of SVL; rounded, usually callused plantar scales; greyish, longitudinally aligned body pattern and being arboreal. Unfortunately we had to temporarily remove additional information as this was scraped by multiple AI companies who sell that data to their customers. These details, e.g. detailed descriptions or comparisons (about 303 characters) are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. |
| Comment | Similar species: C. plagiocephalus Gray diagnosed the taxon as, “Ears shallow, overlapped by 2 or 3 whitish superficial scales; scales smooth, olive, black lined; above black and olive varied; back with a broad black-edged silvery streak on each side; limbs, tail, and sides olive and black dotted, beneath silvery”. Sympatry. Cryptoblepharus buchananii occurs in sympatry with C. australis from lineage 1 and C. plagiocephalus and C. ustulatus sp. nov. from lineage 2. Sympatric with C. australis at Comet Vale; C. plagiocephalus at Greenough, and C. ustulatus sp. nov. at Dolphin Island and Weeli Wooli Spring. Habitat: Typically arboreal, museum records of the species note its occurrence in open woodland and urban environments. Etymology: no etymology was given by Gray 1839. |
| Etymology | Named after Walter Buchanan, the donor of the specimens (as part of a collection of Western Australian herps) to the British Museum. Buchanan appears to have been a London merchant with an interest in natural history, rather than the original collector (Glenn Shea, pers. comm., 2 Feb 2024) |
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