Hardy's skink (''Oligosoma hardyi'') is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

skink Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae, a family in the infraorder Scincomorpha. With more than 1,500 described species across 100 different taxonomic genera, the family Scincidae is one of the most diverse families of lizards. Ski ...

, a

lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Scincidae. The species is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the

Poor Knights Islands The Poor Knights Islands (Māori: ''Tawhiti Rahi)'' are a group of islands off the east coast of the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. They lie to the northeast of Whangarei, and offshore halfway between Bream Head an ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Etymology

The specific name, ''hardyi'', is in honor of

Kiwi Kiwi most commonly refers to: * Kiwi (bird), a flightless bird native to New Zealand * Kiwi (nickname), a nickname for New Zealanders * Kiwifruit, an edible berry * Kiwi dollar or New Zealand dollar, a unit of currency Kiwi or KIWI may also refe ...

herpetologist Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and rept ...

Graham S. Hardy.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Cyclodina hardyi'', p. 116).

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 ''Oligosoma'' is a genus of small to medium-sized skinks (family Scincidae) found only in New Zealand, Norfolk Island and Lord Howe Island. ''Oligosoma'' had previously been found to belong to the ''Eugongylus'' group of genera in the subfamily ...

'' (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 Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. Textiles made from flax are known in ...

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.

Etymology

Geographic range

Taxonomy

Habitat and behaviour

Description

References

Further reading