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Five-lined Skink
(Eumeces fasciatus)
Photo by permission of Paul Hart
Seasons in Walnut Creek: Year-round resident
There are three species of blue tailed skinks in this area and it can be difficult to distinguish between them in the field. Adults have a brown tail but juveniles have bright blue tails. This species has five stripes when the two other species in our area actually have seven stripes. The Five-lined Skink is commonly found across North Carolina, and prefers slightly wetter sites than the other species.
Key Field Marks:
- Scales are smooth and shiny
- Adult Five-lined skink has five distinct light stripes
- Grows up to 5-8 1/2inches in length
- Young skinks have five white stripes on a black background
- Males have reddish-orange jaws during breeding seasons
- Color or markings on back distinguish males from females
Key Behaviors:
- Eats mostly arthropods: spiders, crickets, grasshoppers, beetles, harvestmen, and snails
- Not territorial, but males may be hostile to each other during mating season (April-May)
- Females lay six to twelve eggs in rotten wood or under rocks in June
- Tail may break off and wiggle if animal is handled; this often distracts predators enabling the skink to escape
- Likes to bask in cool weather
Habit and Range:
- Lives in damp areas with brush such as recently cut wood lots and wood piles
- Found in eastern US and throughout North Carolina
Walnut Creek Sighting: Sighted on State Street boardwalk on a sunny day in mid September.
Photo by permission of Betty Anderson
Photo by permission of Jane Wyche
This page prepared by 8th grader Jeremy B.
Exploris Middle School - Fall 2008
