Need ID and Information please.

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Ash

Ash

I dum care =]
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Jul 27, 2005
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Hey guys,

Chris and I found this little dude running around the garage so we caught him. We wanted to get a proper ID on him... I am pretty sure he is a skink.

Also we were curious as to what they eat and how big he may grow?

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It is a skink, one of the five-lined skink complex. It's most likely a common five-lined (Plestiodon fasciatus) but could be a broadhead (P. laticeps). Five-lineds get 6-8" long (including tail), broadheads get 10-12" long and are much bulkier.

Your skink is about half grown. It will lose the blue on the tail and become more brown overall as it grows. These skinks are generalized insectivores and will eat any insects, worms, spiders, etc. that they can fit into their mouths. Are you planning on keeping him? Here's a decent care sheet: http://www.repticzone.com/caresheets/241.html
 
Thank you for the information =]

Yes we were thinking about keeping him but I think we are going to let him go instead, he probably be happier that way and we have a lot of bugs and spiders around here that he can eat.
 
i think its a blue tailed skink or five lined skink
 
Vicious_Fish;3530939; said:
Yep, it's definitely some type of Skink, possibly a Southern 5-Lined.
Click to expand...

Southeastern five-lined has a vertebral stripe distinctly narrower than the other stripes.
 
I had to sort through the University of Memphis herp collection and check IDs a few years back. I have those fasciatus complex ID characteristics pretty well ingrained now.

I like P. inexpectatus because you can separate it out at a glance, by vertebral stripe and subcaudal scale width. Now separating P. fasciatus from young P. laticeps - that's tricky. You wouldn't believe how many lizards have five labials anterior to the postocular on one side and four on the other, and some random mishmash of postlabial character states. It also doesn't help when they're all shriveled from being in too-strong ethanol for a few decades. Ugh.
 
definitely a southern 5- lined but it looks like it has some diluted blood in there, possibly a mix with broadhead or other species. these guys are easy to keep. They will readily feed on crickets and meal worms and you do not need any special heating either. I am not sure about their lighting requirements but I kept the ones i caught under UV just to be on the safe side. also, they are very active so give them plenty of room.
 
Alrighties thanks for the info everyone
 
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