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The broad-headed skink, P. laticeps, is similar, and may be difficult to distinguish from P. fasciatus. The former species usually lacks the two enlarged postlabial scales characteristic of P. fasciatus. [7] [8] Adult male broad-headed skinks, with their large size and swollen red head, are readily distinguished from P. fasciatus. [9]
Together with the Great Plains skink it is the largest of the "Plestiodon skinks", growing from a total length of 15 cm (5.9 in) to nearly 33 cm (13 in). A male broad-headed skink, illustration from Holbrook's North American Herpetology, 1842. The broad-headed skink gets its name from the wide jaws, giving the head a triangular appearance.
The conspicuous coloring of species of Plestiodon is a survival trait: it attracts a predator's attention to the tail of the animal, which will break off when grabbed. A skink thus often manages to escape and hide under some rock, log, or fallen leaves while the predator still contemplates the wildly thrashing severed tail.
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It is a four-lined skink whose light stripes extend onto the tail. The broad dark lateral stripe is 4–4.5 scales wide and there are no light lines on top of the head. The dorsolateral light stripe is on the edges of the 3rd and 4th scale rows, counting from midline of back. One postmental scale is present.
San Lucan skink (Plestiodon lagunensis) Broad-headed skink (Plestiodon laticeps) Oak forest skink (Plestiodon lynxe) Many-lined skink (Plestiodon multivirgatus) Great Plains skink (Plestiodon obsoletus) Guerreran skink (Plestiodon ochoterenae) Prairie skink (Plestiodon septentrionalis) Western skink (Plestiodon skiltonianus)
An adult male is about 8 to 12 inches long. The females are smaller, averaging 4 to 5 inches long. Breeding males are the colorful ones, with an orange or red head, indigo blue or black body, and ...
This is not true for all skinks, however, as some species such as the red-eyed crocodile skink have a head that is very distinguished from the body. These lizards also have legs that are relatively small proportional to their body size. Skinks' skulls are covered by substantial bony scales, usually matching up in shape and size, while ...