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Worm Lizard — Part 3
In preparing popular descriptions of the North American Skinks, the writer finds himself confronted by a difficult proposition, as old individuals of most of the species fade to a dull, olive hue with little or no trace of pattern. Most of the young are vividly striped and the pattern is retained well into maturity.
The following arrangement of the species is the writer's only alternative unless he plunges into a mass of what would be to the beginner, a confusing mix-up of technical details:
Division A. Eight pale lines on a darker ground-colour.
Many-lined Skink, Eumeces multivirgatus, (Hallowell).--Limbs small and far apart; the length of the hind limb applied twice forward, fails to reach the base of the front limb. Twenty-four to twenty-six rows of scales round the body.
Division B. 5 pale lines on a dark ground-colour.
Five-lined Skink, Eumeces quinquelineatus, (Linn.).--The common species of the Eastern and Central States. It attains a length of ten inches. Owing to the two distinct phases of colouration--the young and the adult--it is known under several popular names.
There are 28--34 rows of scales round the body. The body is moderately stout; the length of the hind limb applied twice forward reaches beyond the ear.
The Red-headed Lizard or "Scorpion" is the adult phase. As the creature grows older, the black gives way to a dull brown and the stripes rapidly fade; those on the sides are the longest to remain well defined. Female specimens retain dull stripes through life, but the males become a uniform, dull olive-brown on the body and bright red about the head. With maturity the head becomes very wide and swollen at the temples.
The transformation from a coal-black, vividly striped lizard having a brilliant blue tail, to a plain, brownish creature with a bright, reddish head, has incited some technical writers, who have not appreciated the exact conditions, to name two distinct species.
Total Length . . . . . 9 1/2 inches.
Length of Tail . . . . . 5 inches.
Greatest Diameter . . . . . 1 inches.
Width of Head (temples) . . . . . 1 1/8 inches.
Length of Front Leg . . . . . 1 3/8 inches.
Length of Hind Leg . . . . . 1 7/8 inches.
These measurements are from an example taken near Savannah, Georgia. It is only in the Southern States that the species attains such large proportions. North of South Carolina the size is moderate and in the Virginias, Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey the average length of adult specimens is about six inches.
Hayden's Skink, Eumeces leptogrammus, (Baird). Similar to the preceding, but has a lesser number of scale rows--24 to 26. The young are black, with five dotted lines; tail blue. Adult olive.