Long toed skink
Status: Nationally Vulnerable
Description
The long-toed skink (Oligosoma longipes) is a small to medium endemic skink that grows up to 67mm long Its dorsal (back) is grey-brown, with distinctive paler and dark spots and flecks and rudimentary darker strip down the middle of its back. The sides have a broad dark-coloured stripe edged with pale, notched stripes.
The belly is grey with dark speckles. Its most distinctive feature is exceptionally long toes and tail.
Being cold-blooded, it needs warmth to digest food and is commonly seen basking in the sun on warm rocks. Seen only in a few places in the upper reaches of Canterbury and southern Marlborough, it lives in dry rocky areas, particularly rock piles, boulder tumbles, and eroding river terraces. As it was only discovered in 1997, little is known about it.