Bridging the gap: western rock skinks (Trachylepis sulcata) have a short history in South Africa.

Comparative skull anatomy of terrestrial and crevice-dwelling Trachylepis skinks (Squamata: Scincidae) with a survey of resources in scincid cranial osteology

Skinks account for more than 25% of all lizard species; however, representatives of fewer than a quarter of all species have been characterized osteologically. All but a few of the available cranial descriptions concentrate solely on characters that can be seen externally on the intact skull. Mabuyid skinks of the genus Trachylepis are the dominant, fully limbed skinks in Sub-Saharan Africa, an...

The Phylogenetic Affinities of Trachylepis Sulcata Nigra and the Intraspecific Evolution of Coastal Melanism in the Western Rock Skink

Spauligodon timbavatiensis n. sp. (Nematoda: Pharyngodonidae) from Pachydactylus turneri (Sauria: Gekkonidae) in the northern province, South Africa.

Spauligodon timbavatiensis n. sp. (Nematoda: Pharyngodonidae) from the large intestine of Pachydactylus turneri (Sauria: Gekkonidae) in the Northern Province (RSA) is described and illustrated. It is the fifth species in the Ethiopian region, the others being Spauligodon smithi from Pachydactylus bibronii and Spauligodon petersi from Mabuya sulcata, both in the Northern Cape Province, South Afr...

Intestinal helminths of four species of skinks (Mabuya) (Sauria: Scincidae) from southern Africa.

Intestinal helminths are reported from four species of scincid lizards from southern Africa: Mabuya occidentalis, Mabuya spilogaster, Mabuya striata and Mabuya variegata. The helminth fauna consisted of one species of Cestoda, Oochoristica truncata and five species of Nematoda, Abbreviata paradoxa, Maxvachonia dimorpha, Parapharyngodon rotundatus, Spauligodon petersi and Thubunaea fitzsimonsi. ...

Arrival and diversification of mabuyine skinks (Squamata: Scincidae) in the Neotropics based on a fossil-calibrated timetree

BACKGROUND The evolution of South American Mabuyinae skinks holds significant biogeographic interest because its sister lineage is distributed across the African continent and adjacent islands. Moreover, at least one insular species, Trachylepis atlantica, has independently reached the New World through transoceanic dispersal. To clarify the evolutionary history of both Neotropical lineages, th...