Classification...

It is necessary to view our lizards in thecontext of all the species of reptiles thatinhabit the world.The world’s 6550 species of reptiles aredivided into four orders - CROCODYLIA -(crocodiles and alligators) - CHELONII - (tortoises,terrapins and turtles) - SQUAMATA -(snakes, lizards and amphisbaenians) - andRHYNCHOCEPHALIA - (tuatara).These four orders are divided - throughsub-orders - into 48 Families, which are again divided into 900 genera. Of the world’s 6550species, Southern Africa has around 400Species recorded so far, which is nearly a third of all reptile species occurring in Africa.

For comparison, the USA has 273 Species and Europe and south-west Asia has380 species in areas much larger than southernAfrica. Climate has much to do with distribution. The order SQUAMATA is by far the largestgroup of living reptiles with 6200 species -exceeding the world’s mammal species -and is divided into three sub-orders. The sub-order SERPENTES (Snakes) -contains over 11 families - divided into 417genera with around 2500 species worldwide. Southern Africa has 130 species of snakesof which only 34 have fangs and venom glands. Many of these have venom that isless toxic than that of wasps and bees. Only14 species of snakes can be considered dangerousto humans. The sub-order AMPHBAENIA (Worm Lizards) is divided into 4 families with 21 genera containing about 140 species worldwide.Two families occur in Africa with only theAMPHISBAENIDAE reaching southern Africa.

This is by far the largest family with 15genera containing about 130 species ofwhich four genera with 12 species (three endemic) occur in our area. Lizards belong to the sub-order SAURIA, which is the largest group of living reptiles. Worldwide there are over 16 families dividedinto 400 genera containing over 3700Species. There are four ‘infra-orders’, all of which are represented in southern Africa in 7 Families. These 7 Families are represented by the- Chameleons,Agamas, Geckos,Monitors, SKINKS,Plated & Girdled Lizards,and the OldWorld lizards whichinclude the Mountain, Sandveld,Bushveld, Sand and Desert Lizards. SKINKS are our' typical’ lizards with75 Genera and over600 Species worldwide.

This is the secondmost diverse groupof lizards in southern Africa ( by the Geckos),with 11 Genera containing59 Species -of which one Genus and 31 Species are endemic.After all those statistics, (with thanks to BillBranch and his ‘Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa’) - and within the FamilySCINCIDAE, is found the Sub-FamilyLYGOSOMATIINAE (the Advanced Skinks), underwhich we find the Genus of Typical Skinks -the MABUYA species.COMMON SPECIESAmong the numerous other species, the mostcommon diurnallizards we are likelyto encounteraround rest huts,farm buildings andtown houses, arethe Striped Skink(Mabuya striata) -with two lightstripes down theback, and the RainbowSkink( M a b u y aquinquetaeniata) -with three lightstripes down theback and manywith a bright bluetail.The StripedSkink is probablythe most commonlyseen of thetwo and will becomequite conditionedto houses if not killed by cats and dogs.Males and females have similar colours.The Blue-Tailed (Five-lined) or RainbowSkink prefers more rural habitat. The young ofboth sexes have brilliant, electric blue tails.

Theadult female retains the blue tail with blackstripes along the top and sides, while the adultmale loses the back stripes for small, white bodyspotsand develops a reddish-brown (orange)tail.Other species of lizard have blue or reddishtails and heads which appear to be used in communication.The bright tails are also presumed to be a focalpoint for predators and a distraction whenthey are easily shed and continue wriggling afteran attack.Both species of skink grow to quite a largesize (20-25 cm) and males will prey on smallerspecies. The electric blue tails of the immatureRainbow Skinks stimulate territorial toleranceby the adults - similar to that enjoyed by birds ofprey in immature plumage.PINEAL ‘EYES’Humans have ‘pineal glands’ in the brain area,from which endocrines are secreted. The green,vegetarian, Iguanas of tropical forest habitatshave ‘pineal eyes’ on the top of their heads,with which they are presumed to be able tomeasure ultra-violet light.

The organ is coveredby a transparent layer of skin through which lightcan pass and this assists them to locate the bestsources of light for basking and energy control.In many species the ‘pineal organ’ is vestigialand its function is unclear.Known but little studied, are the ‘pineal organs’on many reptiles and particularly lizards.