Endangered skink not seen for 40 years found in north Queensland
A rare skink not seen for over 40 years has been rediscovered by scientists from the Queensland Museum and James Cook University.
A rare skink not seen for over 40 years has been rediscovered in north Queensland by scientists from the Queensland Museum and James Cook University.
The joint effort to locate the critically endangered Lyon’s Grassland Striped Skink was rewarded when it was found near Mt Surprise, 300km south of Cairns.
The skink lives in cracks in the ground which offer shelter from heat and predators, and is very difficult to see in long grass.
James Cook University scientist Conrad Hoskin, who was part of the team, said the rediscovery of the skink was vitally important for its conservation.
“The skink was last seen in 1981 and was feared to be extinct. To find it again after 42 years, and at several different sites, is exciting. We now need to assess its full distribution and habitat requirements,” Dr Hoskin said.
Two other rare skinks were also located in the team’s survey. The Limbless Fine-lined Slider, was found in the nearby Undara Volcanic National Park, and the Mount Surprise Slider.
Survey team leader, Andrew Amey from the Queensland Museum, said the expedition’s goal was to find the three species, which have very small distributions.
“These lizards are all hard to find and seldom seen. Two are part of a large group of skinks in the genus Lerista, which are only found in Australia and have adapted to sandy soils by reducing their limbs to essentially swim through the soil,” Dr Amey said.
He said the discoveries showed that biodiversity could still exist in grasslands and open woodland which was grazed by cattle.
“It was an exciting moment to find all three skinks, but to find the Lyon’s Grassland Striped Skink was an amazing discovery,” he said.
“We need to know if these skinks have healthy populations or if they are declining. We can’t take effective action to protect them if we don’t know where they occur and what threats are impacting them.”
Scientists on the survey team have been funded by the Queensland Department of Environment and Science to do more surveys on the three rare species.
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