Hardy's skink facts for kids

Hardy's skink (Oligosoma hardyi) is a species of skink, a lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to the Poor Knights Islands of New Zealand.

Etymology

The specific name, hardyi, is in honor of Kiwi herpetologist Graham S. Hardy.

Geographic range

In the Poor Knights Islands, O. hardyi occurs on Tawhiti Rahi Island, Aorangi Island, Aorangaia Island, Archway Island, and two rock stacks (Stack “B,” Stack “C”).

Taxonomy

O. hardyi closely resembles the copper skink, Cyclodina aenea, and was considered to be a member of this species until recently when it was described as a new species using morphological, allozyme and DNA methods (Chapple et al. 2008). More recently, the genus Cyclodina was merged with the genus Oligosoma (Chapple et al. 2009), resulting in a new combination for this species, Oligosoma hardyi.

Habitat and behaviour

O. hardyi is most commonly found in areas where there is ground cover near flax and scrub habitat. It is crepuscular, seeking refuge during the day under stones or thick vegetation.

Description

O. hardyi can be distinguished from all other Oligosoma species, including the other members of the O. aeneum species complex, by having suboculars three and four separated by the fifth supralabial under the eye. In addition, the midbody scale count is greater than that of the slight skink (Oligosoma levidensum) from the Te Paki region.