Species information
Scientific name: Plestiodon stimpsonii
Japanese name: イシガキトカゲ
Chinese name: 石垣石龍子
English name: Stimpson’s skink
Origin: Iriomote, Ishigaki, Taketomijima, Kuroshima, Kohamajima, Haterumajima
Ecology and description
Stimpson’s skink is a small skink endemic to the Yaeyama Islands, with a total length of about 15cm. It is the smallest skink of the genus Plestiodon in Japan.
Stimpson’s skink can be seen in grasslands and forests from the coast to the mountains, and feeds mainly on insects and spiders. In some areas it occurs together with Kishinoue’s giant skink (Plestiodon kishinouyei), which lives in open lowland habitats, while Stimpson’s skink lives mainly in mountain forests, so the two species use different habitats.
Stimpson’s skink was separated from the Okinawa blue-tailed skink (Plestiodon marginatus) by Thompson in 1912 and became an independent species. The type specimens of the Okinawa blue-tailed skink were collected by William Stimpson, who took part in the North Pacific Exploring Expedition of 1853–1856.
References:
Reptile Database (Plestiodon stimpsonii)
Japanese Wikipedia (イシガキトカゲ)
イシガキトカゲ (herpetology.raindrop.jp)
疋田努 (2007). スタイネガー (1907) に掲載された日本とその周辺地域のトカゲ類の分類. 爬虫両棲類学会報, 2007(2), 173–181.
Field photographs taken during our tours, with observation dates
