Variable Skink

Vital Statistics

Latin Name

Mabuya Varia

Length_F

50 - 60 mm

Length_M

50 - 60 mm

Order

Squamata

Family

Scincidae

Description

A medium-sized skink with a rounded snout and a window in each lower lid. Colouration is variable; the back may be blackish, olive, pale brown or red-brown, with or without black spots. There's always a distinct, white lateral stripe down the backbone and on the upper flanks. The belly is bluish-white.

Class

Reptilia

Subspecies

A poorly-defined race, M.v. nyikae, is sometimes recognized from the Nyika Plateau in Malawi.

Distribution

South Eastern Cape, through Eastern Africa to Sudan and Somalia, west to Namibia, Angola and Congo.

Breeding

Females lay 6 - 12 eggs which hatch after a 2-month incubation period. Growth is rapid; both sexes reach maturity in only 8 months.

Diet

Grasshoppers, caterpillars and termites, spiders and, in exceptional cases, other lizards.