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Eremiascincus rubiginosus MECKE & DOUGHTY, 2018

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Higher TaxaScincidae, Sphenomorphinae (Sphenomorphini), Scincoidea, Sauria, Squamata (lizards)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Rusty skinks
G: Rost-Skink 
SynonymEremiascincus rubiginosus MECKE & DOUGHTY 2018 
DistributionAustralia (Western Australia: Pilbara region)

Type locality: Dale’s Gorge, Karijini National Park, Western Australia (22.48103°S, 118.56453°E; Fig. 1E)  
Reproduction 
TypesHolotype: WAM R174519 (Figs. 1A–D), adult female, collected by R.J. Ellis, P. Doughty & A.M. Bauer on 16 August 2014. Paratypes. WAM R129631, unsexed juvenile, gorge 120 km northwest of Newman (22.9166°S, 118.8833°E), collected 21 April 1997; WAM R157584, adult female, cave in a gorge near Robe River (21.6783°S, 114.8817°E), collected 18 May 2004; WAM R164205, adult male, rocky gully 48 km south-southwest of Pannawonica (22.0475°S, 116.1872°E), collected 23 June 2007; WAM R172373, adult female, 10 km southwest of Rio Tinto Hope Downs, collected 14 April 2011; WAM R174598 and WAM R174599, adult females, Dale’s Gorge, Karijini National Park (22.47698°S, 118.56302°E), collected 14 March 2015; WAM R174852, adult female, cave near Red Hill Creek, 30 km south-southeast of Pannawonica (22.08139°S, 116.27583°E), collected 20 May 2015. 
DiagnosisDiagnosis: A moderate-sized Eremiascincus (adult SVL 60–82 mm) with usually seven supralabials (rarely six or eight), three pairs of chin shields, a moderate-sized elliptical ear opening (Fig. 3A), smooth dorsal scales on dorsum and tail lacking longitudinal ridges (Fig. 1A & B, Fig. 2A), scales on dorsal surface of fourth toe ar- ranged in multiple rows with oblique sutures with only the terminal 1–4 scales single, possessing transverse sutures, 24–31 subdigital lamellae under fourth toe that are grooved and bluntly callused, 10–13 plantar scales from heel to base of third toe and dark brownish-black calli on scales of palmar and plantar surfaces (Fig. 3D); background colour of dorsum and tail rich rusty red in live specimens, 17–24 narrow irregular dark bands on nape and dorsum that are at most a single scale wide and > 40 transverse narrow dark bands on original tail (Figs. 1A & B, Fig. 2A, Fig. 4 in Mecke & Doughty 2018).


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CommentHabitat: gorges, rocky gullies, riverbeds or caves surrounded by woodland. The species appears to be largely restricted to rocky habitats and may be encountered in leaf litter covering rock formations or under rock ledges. 
EtymologyThe specific name is based on the Latin adjective rubiginosus (rusty red). 
References
  • Mecke, Sven & Paul Doughty 2018. A new species of Eremiascincus (Squamata: Sauria: Scincidae) from the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Vertebrate Zoology 68 (1): 27–37
  • Werning, Heiko 2018. Ein neuer Skink aus der australischen Pilbara. Terraria-Elaphe 2018 (4): 56 - get paper here
 
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