Red-sided Skink

Trachylepis homalocephala

The Red-sided Skink is a small, slender species of skink in the subfamily Lygosominae. It is indigenous to Southern Africa, where it typically occurs in coastal thicket and leaf litter along the South African coast - from Cape Town, eastwards along the coast as far as Mozambique. A few tiny isolated populations also occur in moist mountainous areas further inland.

This small, elegant skink has a shiny, brightly striped body. Males change colour in the breeding season, developing bright red stripes on their flanks. The Red-sided Skink lays around 6 eggs in summer.

It was first described in 1828 by Weigmann , based on specimens at the Natural History Museum in Berlin that were collected in South Africa by Ludwig Krebs.
Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionChordata
ClassReptilia
OrderSquamata
FamilyScincidae
GenusTrachylepis
SpeciesT. homalocephala
Photographed in
South Africa