Round Island skink
Encyclopedia
The Round Island skink or Telfair's skink (Leiolopisma telfairii), is a species of skink
endemic to Round Island (Mauritius)
. Other members of the genus Leiolopisma
occur on New Caledonia
and New Zealand
but the Round Island skink is closely related to the two extinct Mascarenes taxa, L. mauritiana
from Mauritius and L. ceciliae from Réunion
. It is named after Charles Edward Telfair, the founder of the Royal Society of Arts and Sciences of Mauritius.
diet consists of seeds, fruits, insects and small lizards. 'Cannibalism' is not unknown and the skinks may even kill
their own young to eat them.
visited Round Island in the 1970s, 5000 specimens were recorded as surviving. He brought some specimens to the Jersey Zoo to build up a captive breeding program. Thanks to the eradication of the goats and rabbits on Round Island the increasing of the Round Island skink population was so successful that it was possible to relocate them to other islands like Gunner's Quoin and the Ile aux Aigrettes.
Skink
Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae. Together with several other lizard families, including Lacertidae , they comprise the superfamily or infraorder Scincomorpha...
endemic to Round Island (Mauritius)
Round Island (Mauritius)
Round Island is an uninhabited islet 22.5 kilometers north of Mauritius. It has an area of 1.69 square kilometers and a maximum elevation of 280 meters...
. Other members of the genus Leiolopisma
Leiolopisma
Leiolopisma is a genus of skinks. Most species occur in the region of New Caledonia-New Zealand, and they are related to other genera from that general area, such as Emoia; these and others form the Eugongylus group...
occur on New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
but the Round Island skink is closely related to the two extinct Mascarenes taxa, L. mauritiana
Leiolopisma mauritiana
Leiolopisma mauritiana also known as "Didosaurus maurtianus," was a large species of skink . It was found only in Mauritius, but became extinct around 1600 probably due to introduced predators. It may have been somewhat fossorial in nature. This is speculative and based on a reconstruction...
from Mauritius and L. ceciliae from Réunion
Réunion
Réunion is a French island with a population of about 800,000 located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about south west of Mauritius, the nearest island.Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas departments of France...
. It is named after Charles Edward Telfair, the founder of the Royal Society of Arts and Sciences of Mauritius.
Description
It reaches a length between 30 and 40 cm. The body is general brownish grey mottled with dark brown spots. The small scales exhibit a rainbow-coloured shimmer when the sunlight is reflected on them. The body is approximately cylinder-shaped. It can cast its relatively long tail during a fight or to escape capture; the tail is regenerated after a while. Their short but vigorous legs are used to dig burrows.Ecology
Its omnivorousOmnivore
Omnivores are species that eat both plants and animals as their primary food source...
diet consists of seeds, fruits, insects and small lizards. 'Cannibalism' is not unknown and the skinks may even kill
Infanticide (zoology)
In animals, infanticide involves the killing of young offspring by a mature animal of its own species, and is studied in zoology, specifically in the field of ethology. Ovicide is the analogous destruction of eggs. Although human infanticide has been widely studied, the practice has been observed...
their own young to eat them.
Status and conservation
This species was once numerous on Mauritius and offshore islands like Flat Island. Due to habitat destruction and introduced species like goats, black rats and rabbits it was only confined to Round Island since the mid of the 19th century. When Gerald DurrellGerald Durrell
Gerald "Gerry" Malcolm Durrell, OBE was a naturalist, zookeeper, conservationist, author and television presenter...
visited Round Island in the 1970s, 5000 specimens were recorded as surviving. He brought some specimens to the Jersey Zoo to build up a captive breeding program. Thanks to the eradication of the goats and rabbits on Round Island the increasing of the Round Island skink population was so successful that it was possible to relocate them to other islands like Gunner's Quoin and the Ile aux Aigrettes.