My dog and I walked a trail through the woods in Kirkwood Park last week. Approaching a bridge over the creek, I noted a couple of lizards turn tail and disappear below the decking. On our way back, I snuck up and got some photos of the little fellas. I knew they were skinks, but had no real idea what that means, so had to crack the internet for detail.
Technically reptilian, skinks are lizards, but not all lizards are skinks. They can both be lumped into the reptile classification, with geckos, iguanas, Gila Monsters, and possibly some dinosaurs.
The world record holder for lizards is the Komodo Dragon, up to 10 feet long and 150 pounds. Apex predators, they eat whatever they want, and are also venomous (as if they need it.) Skinks are cute by comparison, but appear mildly gross to squeamish folks.
Skinks have the tiniest limbs of the lizard family. Their small clawed fingers are adapted to clinging to trees, where they generally hang out. In fact, they seem to have a strong preference for black walnut, making Eastern Missouri ideal habitat for them.
Despite the skinny legs, they’re quick, and rely on powerful side muscles to give it a snakelike undulating zip. The two at the bridge disappeared twice before I caught them again coming out into the warmth of the early sun.
Sneaking up on a skink is difficult, in that they have a keen sense of detecting vibration. Step on that wooden bridge, for example, and the skinks slink away in a blink.
They eat arthropods like crickets and spiders, moths and sometimes smaller lizards. In turn, skinks are prey for raccoons, possums, foxes and skunks. Skunks snacking on skinks sounds like part of a tongue twister.
I do happen to have a skunk tongue twister. It goes:
The skunk sat upon the stump. The skunk thunk the stump stunk and the stump thunk the skunk stunk.
Skinks not only don’t stink, but are hypoallergenic- a good pet for anyone who sneezes around cats. The skink will bite if threatened, but they’re non-venomous and the bite is surprisingly strong but its tiny teeth prevent it from being particularly painful.
If you try to catch a skink by its non-biting end, it might release its tail and scamper away. Neat trick there.
Of the eleven species of Missouri lizards, six are distinct species of skink. The beauties I encountered are broad-headed skinks. The adults range from 6 to 13 inches in length, and live 7-8 years. They are extremely arboreal, coming down only to feed. I was lucky to spot them foraging around the bridge in the mid-morning. Broad-headed skinks are a shiny brown or olive, and the male develops an orange head during the spring mating season.
As you can see from the map, St. Louis lies at the northern edge of the broad-headed skink’s range. This edge is moving north with the climate. They are more abundant than you might expect, as they don’t qualify for any list of species of conservation concern.
Part of their abundance is a benefit from their exceptional size. Females can lay from 6-20 eggs at a time. The prospective mother stays with her eggs until they hatch in mid-summer.
For those of you that are now enthralled by the broad-headed skink, I offer this YouTube dive into the capture and presentation of one. This guy from The Wild Report has his naturalist act down well, and it’s a good look at an interesting life form. The skink, that is.
Resources
AZ Animals at https://a-z-animals.com/animals/skink-lizard
Skinks in Missouri from Snake Tracks at https://www.snaketracks.com/skinks-in-missouri/
Photo of broad headed skink near Jefferson City by Sara Heaston of iNaturalist at https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/95048184
Broad-headed skink range map from Virginia Herpetological Society.
Washington University site for Missouri’s Natural Heritage at https://sites.wustl.edu/monh/lizards-of-missouri/
Broad-Headed Skink from Missouri Department of Conservation at https://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/broad-headed-skink?fbclid=IwAR1uXsY9ZdjwP_J4WmIVvh61aB89Cw7rN2gxp0TkmV7WGYEUg4UCdO2KnFs
If you find yourself craving more critters, try my recent rant about squirrels at lafayettesquarearchives.com/2020-making-a-case-for-squirrels/
Quite a body of work you’ve created here, sir. A Renaissance Man, you are. Curiosity will do that.
Much appreciated, Sir Duke. Let’s collaborate on a book about work’s body. That ought to keep ’em talkin’