Niveoscincus is a genus

Genus

In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of skink

Skink

Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae. Together with several other lizard families, including Lacertidae , they comprise the superfamily or infraorder Scincomorpha...

s (family

Family (biology)

In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...

 Scincidae), commonly called Snow Skinks or Cool-skinks and residing mainly in Tasmania

Tasmania

Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

 or Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. It belongs to a clade

Clade

A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...

 with the genera Carlia

Carlia

The four-fingered skinks are the skink genus Carlia in the subfamily Lygosominae. It belongs to a clade with the genera Niveoscincus, Lampropholis and possibly others of the Eugongylus group.-Species:*Carlia aenigma...

, Lampropholis

Lampropholis

Lampropholis, the Indo-Australian ground skinks or Sunskinks, are a genus of skinks in the subfamily Lygosominae. It belongs to a clade with the genera Niveoscincus, Leiolopisma and possibly others of the Eugongylus group. They are found mainly in Indonesia and Australia...

and possibly others of the Eugongylus

Eugongylus

Eugongylus is a genus of skinks in the subfamily Lygosominae. The namesake of the Eugonglyus group of genera, it occupies a quite basal position among these...

group. For similar skinks see genera Pseudemoia

Pseudemoia

Pseudemoia is a genus of skinks native to south–eastern Australia. For similar skinks see genera Bassiana, Lampropholis, and Niveoscincus.-Species:...

, Lampropholis

Lampropholis

Lampropholis, the Indo-Australian ground skinks or Sunskinks, are a genus of skinks in the subfamily Lygosominae. It belongs to a clade with the genera Niveoscincus, Leiolopisma and possibly others of the Eugongylus group. They are found mainly in Indonesia and Australia...

, and Bassiana

Bassiana

Bassiana is a genus of skinks . It belongs to the Eugongylus group; the genus Oligosoma appears to be a fairly close relative. An alternative name is Acritoscincus...

. These skinks have adapted to the cooler weather of southern Australia and particularly Tasmania, hence the common names.

Species

• Niveoscincus coventryi (Rawlinson, 1975) – Southern Forest Cool-skink
• Niveoscincus greeni (Rawlinson, 1975) – Alpine Cool-skink or Northern Snow Skink
• Niveoscincus metallicus (O'Shaughnessy, 1874) – Metallic Skink
  Metallic Skink
  The Metallic Cool-skink or Metallic Skink is a species of skink in the Scincidae family. It is endemic to Australia, found in southern Victoria, as well as in Tasmania where it is the most widespread and common lizard, occurring on many offshore islands in Bass Strait as well as the mainland. It...
  
   or Metallic Cool-skink
• Niveoscincus microlepidotus (O'Shaughnessy, 1874) – Boulder Cool-skink or Southern Snow Skink
• Niveoscincus ocellatus (Gray, 1845) – Spotted Skink
  Spotted Skink
  The Spotted Skink , sometimes called the Ocellated Cool-skink or Ocellated Skink, is a skink endemic to Tasmania, Australia. It is a ground-dwelling, viviparous species, usually found in rocky habitats, and widespread in the northern and eastern parts of the state, as well as in the eastern Bass...
  
  , Ocellated Cool-skink, or Ocellated Skink
  Ocellated Skink
  Ocellated Skink may refer to:* Chalcides ocellatus, the Ocellated Skink, found around the Mediterranean* Niveoscincus ocellatus, the Tasmanian Ocellated or Spotted Skink...
  
  
• Niveoscincus orocryptus (Hutchinson, Schwaner & Medlock, 1988) – Tasmanian Mountain Skink
  Tasmanian Mountain Skink
  The Tasmanian Mountain Skink is a skink endemic to Tasmania, Australia. It is viviparous and mainly found in alpine areas, though occurring down to sea-level in the south-west of the state....
  
  , Heath Cool-skink, or Mountain Skink
• Niveoscincus palfreymani (Rawlinson, 1974) – Pedra Branca Skink
  Pedra Branca Skink
  The Pedra Branca Cool-skink, Pedra Branca Skink, or Red-throated Skink is a species of skink in the Scincidae family. It is endemic to Australia, and is restricted to Pedra Branca, an island off southern Tasmania of only 2.5 ha, where it is dependent on the seabird colonies....
  
  , Pedra Branca Cool-skink, or Red-throated Skink
• Niveoscincus pretiosus (O'Shaughnessy, 1874) – Tasmanian Tree Skink
  Tasmanian Tree Skink
  The Agile Cool-skink or Tasmanian Tree Skink is a species of skink in the Scincidae family. It is endemic to Tasmania and the Bass Strait islands. It is viviparous, and may be found in a wide variety of habitats, from tall forests to rocky coastlines....
  
  or Agile Cool-skink