Kasner's dwarf burrowing skink (''Scelotes kasneri''), also known
commonly as Kasner's burrowing skink, is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...
of
lizard
Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia al ...
in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
Scincidae.
Geographic range
''Scelotes kasneri'' is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...
to the
Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
coast of
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...
.
Description
The limbs of ''S. kasneri'' are greatly reduced. The forelimbs are entirely lost, and the hind limbs retain only two digits.
[
]
Reproduction
''S. kasneri'' is viviparous
Among animals, viviparity is development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. This is opposed to oviparity which is a reproductive mode in which females lay developing eggs that complete their development and hatch externally from the ...
.[
]
Etymology
The specific name, ''kasneri'', as well as the common names, are in honor of J.H. Kasner, collector of the type specimen
In biology, a type is a particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralizes the ...
.[Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Scelotes kasneri'', p. 138).]
References
Further reading
* Branch, Bill (2004). ''Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa''. Third Revised edition, Second impression. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 399 pp. . (''Scelotes kasneri'', p. 144 + Plate 48).
*Heideman, Neil J.L.; Mulcahy, Daniel G.; Sites, Jack W. Jr.; Hendricks, Martin G.J.; Daniels, Savel R. (2011). "Cryptic diversity and morphological convergence in threatened species of fossorial skinks in the genus ''Scelotes'' (Squamata: Scincidae) from the Western Cape Coast of South Africa: Implications for species boundaries, digit reduction and conservation". ''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'' 61 (3): 823–833.
* FitzSimons VFM (1939). "Descriptions of some new species and subspecies of lizards from South Africa". ''Ann. Transvaal Mus.'' 20 (1): 5–16. (''Scelotes kasneri'', new species, p. 13).
Scelotes
Reptiles described in 1939
Endemic reptiles of South Africa
Taxa named by Vivian Frederick Maynard FitzSimons
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
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