''Paracontias'' 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 ...

skink Skinks are a type of lizard belonging to the family (biology), family Scincidae, a family in the Taxonomic rank, infraorder Scincomorpha. With more than 1,500 described species across 100 different taxonomic genera, the family Scincidae is one o ...

lizards Lizard is the common name used for all 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 oceanic island chains. The ...

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 ...

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

Taxonomy and systematics

''Paracontias'' is usually placed in the

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Scincinae Scincinae is a subfamily of lizards. The subfamily contains 33 genera, and the genera contain a combined total of 284 species, commonly called skinks. The systematics is at times controversial. The group is probably paraphyletic. It is one of thr ...

, which seems to be

paraphyletic Paraphyly is a taxonomic term describing a grouping that consists of the grouping's last common ancestor and some but not all of its descendant lineages. The grouping is said to be paraphyletic ''with respect to'' the excluded subgroups. In co ...

however. Probably quite close to ''

Amphiglossus ''Amphiglossus'' is a genus of skinks, lizards in the Family (biology), family Scincidae. Taxonomy The genus ''Amphiglossus'' is usually placed in the subfamily Scincinae, which seems to be paraphyletic, however. Probably quite close to ''Para ...

'' and possibly '' Androngo trivittatus'', it belongs to a major

clade In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach t ...

which does not seem to include the

type genus In biological taxonomy, the type genus (''genus typica'') is the genus which defines a biological family and the root of the family name. Zoological nomenclature According to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, "The name-bearin ...

Scincus ''Scincus'' is a genus of skinks, lizards in the family (biology), family Scincidae. The genus contains four or five species, all of which are typical desert inhabitants, living in sandy and dune-like areas with a hot and dry climate. Species in ...

''. Thus, it will probably be eventually assigned to a new, yet-to-be-named subfamily. (Austin & Arnold 2006)

Species

The following 14

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), ...

are recognized as being valid.. www.reptile-database.org *'' Paracontias ampijoroensis'' *'' Paracontias brocchii'' – stone skink *'' Paracontias fasika'' *'' Paracontias hafa'' *'' Paracontias hildebrandti'' – Hildebrand's skink *'' Paracontias holomelas'' – Anzahamaru skink *'' Paracontias kankana'' *'' Paracontias mahamavo'' *'' Paracontias manify'' *'' Paracontias milloti'' – Nosy Mamoko skink *'' Paracontias minimus'' *'' Paracontias rothschildi'' – Rothschild's skink *'' Paracontias tsararano'' *'' Paracontias vermisaurus'' ''

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 parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Paracontias''.

Taxonomy and systematics

Species

References

Further reading