''Lankascincus'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
lizard
Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...
s,
commonly known as lanka skinks and tree skinks, in the
family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
Scincidae. The genus is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only 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 foun ...
to
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
.
Species
The genus ''Lankascincus'' comprises nine
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
.
*''
Lankascincus deignani'' –
Deignan's tree skink
*''
Lankascincus dorsicatenatus''
*''
Lankascincus fallax'' – Peters's tree skink
*''
Lankascincus gansi'' –
Gans's tree skink, Gans's lankaskink
*''
Lankascincus merrill'' –
Merrill's lanka skink
*''
Lankascincus sameerai'' –
Sameera's lanka skink
*''
Lankascincus sripadensis
''Lankascincus sripadensis'', also Common name, commonly known as the Sripada forest skink, is a species of lizard in the Family (biology), family Scincidae. The species is Endemism, endemic to the island of Sri Lanka.
References
* http://reptil ...
'' – Sripada forest skink
*''
Lankascincus taprobanensis'' – Ceylon tree skink
*''
Lankascincus taylori
''Lankascincus taylori'', commonly known as Taylor's tree skink, is a species of lizard in the Family (biology), family Scincidae. The species is Endemism, endemic to the island of Sri Lanka.
Etymology
The Specific name (zoology), specific nam ...
'' –
Taylor's tree skink
''
Nota bene
( ; plural: ) is the Latin language, Latin phrase meaning ''note well''.
In manuscripts, ''nota bene'' is abbreviated in upper-case as NB and N.B., and in lower-case as n.b. and nb; the editorial usages of ''nota bene'' and ''notate bene'' fi ...
'': A
binomial authority
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin grammatical forms, altho ...
in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Lankascincus''.
References
External links
*
Greer AE (1991). "''Lankascincus'', a New Genus of Scincid Lizards from Sri Lanka, with Descriptions of Three New Species". ''Journal of Herpetology'' 25 (1): 59–64. .
*
Batuwita S,
Pethiyagoda R (2007). "Description of a new species of litter skink (Squamata: Scincidae: ''Lankascincus'')". ''Ceylon Journal of Science (Biological Sciences)'' 36 (2): 80–87. . (''Lankascincus greeri'', new species).
Lizard genera
Taxa named by Allen Eddy Greer
{{Sphenomorphinae-stub